Sending items to IWU students

Guidelines for sending mail and other shipments

Use the following addressing template for everything you send to your student at IWU.  All IWU living unit street addresses (residence halls and fraternity and sorority chapter houses) follow the template and example below.

MAIL

The United States Postal Service (USPS) delivers mail and packages to each residence hall daily during the regular academic year on regular postal delivery days.

• Correctly-addressed USPS mail is distributed to students through individually-assigned mailboxes in the residence hall lobby. 

• Items improperly addressed (to a previous residence, for instance) will be forwarded to current students (but may be delayed 3-5 days) or returned as per USPS regulations.

• A signature from the student is required for any package or for any piece of mail sent with special services, such as delivery confirmation.  Signatures are obtained by residence hall desk staff during posted hours. 

• Please never send cash through the mail; use a check or money order instead.

• Mail early (7-10 days) before holidays, such as Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Easter, etc, before birthdays and before the start of finals because the volume of mail in the USPS system and/or on campus can cause delays during these times. 

• Mail received during breaks (between hall closings and hall openings) is delivered centrally to Publications, Printing and Mailing Services (PPMS), and typically unavailable to students.  Students who need access to mail delivered during breaks should contact PPMS directly (309/556-3387) to arrange a time.

SHIPPERS / CARRIERS

IWU’s preferred shipper is UPS http://www.ups.com/content/us/en/index.jsx, because we have found them to be the most responsible, dependable, and able to interface with our campus systems.  Shipments are also commonly accepted from Fed-Ex and DHL, and less commonly from other shippers, as well.

• All shipped packages are received in the Physical Plant during regular IWU business hours; this means shipped packages are not accepted on Saturdays. 

• From the time they are received on campus, shipped packages take 24 to 48 hours to reach their final destination at the residence hall desk.  This means that even items shipped “overnight” will take at least 2-3 days to reach the student. 

• UPS commercial rate shipments generally arrive from the Chicago area at IWU on the next delivery day.

• Please keep your tracking number until your student has confirmed receipt of the package.

PERISHABLES

Perishables, such as flowers and foodstuffs are accepted at residence hall desks between the hours of 11 a.m. and 4 p.m.  Unfortunately, there are not refrigeration units available in which to store perishable items between the time the item is delivered and the time a student signs for it; students are responsible for timely receipt of perishable items delivered to them and accepted on their behalf. 

EMERGENCIES

If unusual circumstances require you to send an item to your student outside the delivery conditions and timeframes indicated above, please contact Eric Gordon (309/556-3387) at Publications, Printing and Mailing Services (PPMS) to mutually determine the best delivery method and timeline.  PPMS office hours are 8:00-Noon and 1:00-4:00 p.m. Monday-Friday.

LIVING UNIT STREET ADDRESSES