There are several ways of keeping in touch with friends and family in the US and back home- by mail, phone, e-mail, etc.

Post Office

The UMC Post Office, located in 127 Student Center, handles all campus mail. Mail is delivered to and from the campus once a day. Mail pickup is at 3:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Services of the UMC Post Office also include UPS and Federal Express.

All students are assigned a UMC post office box number , which is obtained at orientation. Make sure if you mail a letter to write down your P.O. number so that mail gets to you.

* Students P.O. boxes are located next to the UMC Post Ofice on the first floor of the Student Center .

All official college correspondence, including registration material, is mailed via the on-campus mailbox. Remember to check your mail daily. If you have received a parcel, the Info-desk will notify you via e-mail.

UMC Post Office
127 Student Center

2900 University Ave.

Crookston , MN 56716

(218) 281-8329

Mail/Courier Services

Besides the UMC Post Office, the following mail and Courier Services are available in Crookston:

Mailing

Stamps and envelopes are available at the UMC Bookstore & Information Desk in the Student Center . Make sure you have the recipient's full address on the envelope and that you have placed a postal stamp on it. You can drop your correct stamped and addressed envelope in the "Outgoing Mail" drop box at UMC's Post Office. To send packages, consult the post office staff or refer to any of the mail/courier services listed above.

* All packages sent to UMC will go to the Information Table. They will e-mail you when they arrive. This is why it is important to check your UMC e-mail.

Example of how to send a letter in-state or internationally

Your Name
UMC Box Number
University of Minnesota , Crookston
Crookston , MN 56716

USA (if sending internationally)

To: Name of who you are sending to

Address of where you want things sent

City, State, Zip

Country (if overseas)

Telephones on Campus

Every student who stays on campus has telephone service in their rooms. They may need to purchase phone but everyone has the service. It is an automatic charge on your housing bill.

• Setting up your phone - students may need to purchase a phone. An inexpensive phone could be around $9.00
• Setting up your voice mail - All students have access to a voice message system. If you are interested in setting up this voice mail box please contact your RA.
• In order to use your phone or any phone on campus dial 9 then dial the number you are calling. (ex. 9, 289-0444)
• All area codes in this calling area is (218) - you won't need to call 218 when using a campus phone.
• Free Calls are numbers that 281, 891, 280, 289, numbers. You can dial these numbers direct from any school phone. Ex. 9, 281-2016 or 9, 289-0444
• Long Distance calling - All students have access to call long distance and it can be put on residence room bill. In order to make a long distance call, 9-1, (then the phone number). In order to make sure this is available to you this must be set up ahead of time. Please contact your RA before you try this.
• International Phone Calls - All students can call internationally from their rooms. There are fee's attached to these calls so make sure to go over your phone plan with your RA before you attempt these calls. In order to call dial 9, 011 (then dial your country code and your phone number). If you have any problems with these phone calls please contact the operator by dialing 9, 0
• Phone Cards - Students find phone cards are the least expensive ways of calling on the telephone. These cards can be purchased at any local convenience store. Walmart, SAMS CLUB, and Target have longer lasting calling cards. (These cards are also renewable)
• Computer - All students at UMC must lease a UMC computer. Students do have access to communication functions of those computers. This includes a built in mic, and speakers in the computer. Here are some common sites that will keep you connected.
• http://www.msn.com/
• http://www.internetcalls.com/en/index.html
• http://www.skype.com/helloagain.html

Cell Phones

A wide range of services and plans are available from various cell phone service providers. Call or visit any of the following stores about obtaining a cell phone.

You will need a social security number to apply for most cell phone contracts. Only Sprint lets you apply for a contract without having a social security number. Many providers also have pre-paid cell phones, which you might be able to obtain without having a social security number. Please call the service provider for more information on these options.

E-mail

Student e-mail is the official means of communication at UMC and each student is assigned an e-mail addresses and a password. Check this account regularly for important information and messages. You can access your UMC e-mail while off-campus by going to https://mail.umcrookston.edu/ .

E-mail addresses are considered public information and may be found in student directory or faculty directory. Select an obscure password and change it frequently, and do not share your password with others. Your mailbox has a maximum capacity of 40MB. You will receive warnings if you reach your storage capacity.

If students do not check their UMC e-mail accounts and their electronic mailboxes are full, you may miss valuable information! Please check your e-mail on a regular basis!

Access and use of e-mail is a privilege and should be treated as such by all users. Campus computing resources, including e-mail, may not be used for illegal or unauthorized purposes such as harassment, destruction of or damage to equipment, software, or data belonging to others etc. Use of e-mail for private business purposes unrelated to the University is NOT allowed . If you use the system in ways that are judged excessive or wasteful, your access to the system may be taken away, and you may be subject to University disciplinary procedures . Some uses that may be deemed "wasteful" include chain letter emails, mass mailing of jokes, political campaigning, and mass mailing of items for sale or lost and found. This is also known as "SPAM forwarding". Official mass emails should be submitted to faculty and staff or club advisors. Please go to this website if you have questions about the use of your computer. http://helpdesk.umcrookston.edu/policies/acceptableuse.htm