MS Forms - Getting Started

Relevant to: faculty, staff, and students

This article contains information considered accurate at the time of publishing. Technology updates, changes in University security practices, and/or policies and procedures may affect the information in this article - updates to articles are scheduled on a periodic basis and will address any required changes.

Introduction

MS Forms is an app available with the university's O365 license. You can create surveys, gradable quizzes, and polls, and easily see results as they come in. Polls can be set as anonymous or to record user information (name and date of completion) within the results. This article will review how to set up a form or quiz, how to share links to collaborate and/or collect responses, and how to adjust basic settings for respondents completing the form.

For help with the advanced settings and formatting features with MS Forms, see the article MS Forms - Advanced Settings.

Please note: forms are saved as you create them automatically. If you delete a question, it will be permanently deleted along with any response data that's been collected for it. There is no undo option on MS Forms at this time.

Creating a New Form (Survey or Poll)

  1. Open MS Forms from your O365 account.
  2. Click the chevron next to the "New Quiz" button to select the "New Form" option from the drop-down that will appear to create an ungraded survey or poll.
  3. Enter the name of the form in the "Untitled form" textbox. This is the name that will appear in the list on the app's homepage when you need to return to it.
    1. Optional: enter a description or set of instructions for users completing the form.
    2. Please note: form titles can have up to 90 characters and descriptions can have up to 1,000 characters.
  4. Click the "+ Add new" button to add new questions to the form. Current question types include:
    1. Choice: multiple choice questions with an "Other" option that can be added to allow a short-answer response.
      1. Optional: click "Add option" to insert an additional choice or "Add other" to add a short answer textbox.
      2. Optional: select the "Multiple answers" slider to allow users to submit multiple responses.
    2. Text: fill-in-the-blank responses with short or long answer options.
      1. Note: click the "Long answer" slider to allow a longer response.
    3. Rating: rate a question on a scale of 1-10 using numbers or stars.
    4. Date: opens a calendar picker.
    5. Ranking: reorder/prioritize a list of set responses.
    6. Likert: gauge attitudes/opinions about a range of topics.
      1. Optional: click "Add statement" to add more topics.
    7. File upload: allows file submissions (only for certain organization-based settings).
      1. Please note: max of 10 files or 1 GB. Files are saved to your OneDrive.
    8. Net Promoter Score: rating of 1-10 with editable labels under the numbers.
    9. Section: break up the form into pages with new headers and descriptions.
  5. Add your question, answers, or features:
    1. Select the "Required" slider to prevent submission until complete.
    2. Select "More options" (ellipsis) to add a "Subtitle".
    3. Hover over an answer to display a "Trash" icon to delete it.
  6. Repeat steps 4–5 until all questions are added.
    1. Optional: use the "Copy" icon to duplicate questions.
  7. Use up/down arrows to reorder questions.

Creating a New Quiz

Please Note: Auto-grading can be enabled for Choice and short answer Text questions on a quiz. All other question types must be manually graded.

  1. Open MS Forms from your O365 account.
  2. Select the "New Quiz" button to create a gradable quiz.
  3. Click the "+ Add new" button to add new questions to the form. Current question types include:
    1. Choice: multiple choice questions with an "Other" option that can be added to allow a short-answer response.
      1. Optional: Click "Add option" or "Add other" to insert additional answer fields.
      2. Optional: Select the "Multiple answers" slider for multiple selections.
    2. Text: fill-in-the-blank responses with short or long answer options.
      1. Note: Click the "Long answer" slider to increase textbox size.
    3. Rating: numeric or star-based rating scale (1–10).
    4. Date: opens a calendar picker.
    5. Ranking: reorder/prioritize a list of responses.
    6. Likert: gauge attitudes and opinions.
      1. Optional: Click "Add statement" to include more topics.
    7. File upload: allows file submission (only available to users in your organization).
      1. Please note: Upload limit is 10 files or 1 GB, saved to OneDrive.
    8. Net Promoter Score: 1–10 scale with editable labels (e.g., “Not at all likely” to “Extremely likely”).
    9. Section: break questions across pages with optional sub-headings and descriptions.
  4. Add your question, answers (for Choice, Ranking, Likert), point values, and other settings:
    1. Select the "Required" slider to enforce response completion.
    2. Use the "More options" icon (ellipsis) to add a subtitle.
    3. Hover over answers to use the "Trash" icon for deletion.
    4. Optional: For Choice questions, hover and check "Correct answer" or click "Add answer" for Text responses to auto-grade.
  5. Repeat steps 3–4 to finish all questions.
    1. Optional: Use the "Copy" icon to duplicate a question and its settings.
  6. Use the up/down arrows to reorder questions.

Preview Your Form

  • Select the "Preview" button to see how your form will look on a computer.
  • Click the "Mobile" button to view the form layout for mobile users or test your form.
  • Select the "Submit" button when all required questions are answered.
  • Select "Back" to resume editing your form.

Adjust the Basic Settings of a Form

  • Click the "More form settings" button (ellipsis) and choose "Settings" to open options.
  • Select "Who can fill out this form":
    • Anyone can respond: Users don’t need to sign in. Submissions are anonymous.
      • Please note: Users can submit multiple entries.
    • Only people in my organization can respond: Default option. Requires login with Empire State University credentials.
      • Record name: Checked by default. Displays user name in "Responses".
      • One response per person: Optional checkbox to limit to one submission.
    • Specific people in my organization can respond: Only specified users/groups may respond.
      • Record name: Same as above.
      • One response per person: Optional checkbox.
  • Check or uncheck the following options:
    • Options for responses:
      • Accept responses: Checked by default. Disabling will block form access.
      • Start date: Schedules opening time.
      • End date: Schedules closing time.
        • Please note: Users must click "Submit" before this date/time or responses won’t be saved.
      • Shuffle questions: Randomizes questions within sections.
      • Show progress bar: Displays completion progress.
      • Customize thank you message: Adds a post-submission message.
    • Response receipts:
      • Accept responses: Checked by default.
      • Start date: Unchecked by default.

Share a Form to Collect Responses

  • Open the form you want to share.
  • Click the "Share" button to open sharing options.
  • Use the "Send and collect responses" dropdown to choose who can respond:
    • Anyone can respond: Anyone inside or outside the university can submit responses.
    • Only people in my organization can respond: (default) Only SUNY Empire users signed in with their university accounts can respond.
    • Specific people in my organization can respond: Only specified users/distribution lists can respond.
      • Note: You can specify up to 100 individuals and/or lists.
  • Select how to send the form:
    • Link: Get a unique link to share via email, announcements, etc.
    • QR code: Download a .png of the QR code to share.
    • Embed: Copy the HTML embed code for use in websites or documents.
      • Note: Requires pasting into an HTML editor.
    • Email: Opens your default email app with a link to the form. Customize the message and send.

Share a Form to Collaborators Who Need to Edit/View Responses

Share a form with collaborators to allow them to edit and view responses. You remain the form owner, and it stays on your MS Forms homepage. Only the owner can change permission levels.

Please note: Any changes made by collaborators are saved automatically and cannot be undone.

  • Open the form you want to share.
  • Click the "Share" button.
  • Under "Share to collaborate," choose a permission level:
    • Users with an Office 365 work or school account can view and edit: (default) Anyone with an Office 365 account can co-author.
    • People in my organization can view and edit: Any SUNY Empire user can co-author.
    • Specific people in my organization can view and edit: Only specified people or lists can co-author.
  • Click the "+ Get a link to view and edit" button to generate a link.
  • Click "Copy" next to the link.
  • Paste the link in an email, chat, or message visible only to the intended collaborators.
  • Collaborators will see the form under "Shared with me" in their MS Forms homepage.

Review, Print, or Delete a Summary of Responses

When you open a form, the "Questions" tab is shown by default. To review responses, click the "Responses" tab.

The header shows how many responses were submitted, the average completion time, and the form’s status (Active or Inactive).

Select the "More options" icon (ellipsis) below the summary to:

  • Delete all responses
  • Print a summary of responses
  • Create a summary link to share real-time updates (no editing access)

Scroll to view summaries per question. For questions with statistical data, graphic breakdowns will appear. Hover to view details.

Click "Insights" for analytics and trends (e.g., word clouds or statistical summaries).

Click "More Details" under each question to see all individual responses for that item.

Review, Print, or Delete an Individual Respondent's Answers

When you open a form, the "Questions" tab appears by default. Click the "Responses" tab to view responses.

Click "View results" to view answers by respondent. For anonymous forms, respondents are numbered. The same number appears in the exported Excel file.

Use the arrow toggles to navigate between respondents, or use the dropdown to jump to a specific one.

Select the "More options" icon (ellipsis) to delete or print a respondent’s answers.

Manually Grade a Quiz

  1. Open the quiz that needs to be graded.
  2. Select the "Responses" tab.
  3. Click the "Review answers" button to open each respondent's quiz. Use arrows or the dropdown to navigate.
  4. Enter scores in the "Points" textbox next to each question.
    1. Please note: Questions that need review will show a "Needs review" message, which disappears once the score is saved.
    2. Optional: Click "Give feedback" next to the score box for individual comments, or use the icon at the top for overall feedback.
  5. Click "Review next" to move to the next respondent.

Post Scores to Respondents of a Quiz

To make scores and feedback visible to respondents:

  1. Open the quiz and go to the "Responses" tab.
  2. Click "Post scores". A list of respondents and their score statuses (Graded, Ungraded, Posted) will appear.
  3. Check the "Select to post grade" box next to each respondent.
  4. Click "Post scores" to confirm.

Need technical assistance? Contact the IT Service Desk.

Print Article