Regular hours:
Monday through Friday — 8:00 a.m. through 4:30 p.m.
Addressing of Faculty & Staff Mail
Every day the campus mail center receives thousands of pieces of mail. Without a proper address, many pieces will be delayed or returned to the sender.
The acceptable formats for incoming mail to faculty and staff are:
| NAME | NAME |
| DEPARTMENT | MAILSTOP |
| BUILDING | RENSSELAER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE |
| RENSSELAER | 110 8TH ST |
| 110 8TH ST | TROY, NY 12180-3590 |
| TROY, NY 12180-3590 |
The last two lines of the address must be 110 8th Street, Troy, NY 12180-3590.
Mail and parcels will be delivered to your mailstop NOT your office. The following formats will ensure your mail is delivered as efficiently as possible.
Mailstop information can be found on the RPI INFO page. To update your mailstop information, please follow the instructions here.
Placement of the address on the face of an envelope should conform to the following USPS specifications:
- The address should be in an area a half-inch from each side of the envelope.
- The top of the address should be no more than 2 3/4" from the bottom of the envelope.
- The bottom of the address should be no more than 5/8" from the bottom of the envelope.
- The area 4 1/2" by 5/8" in the lower right hand corner of the envelope should remain empty for bar code placement.
When hand-addressing mail, be sure to print legibly as failure to do so may cause delays in sorting by the U.S. Post Office. Computer-generated labels are preferred.
Campus mail consists of correspondence from one campus address for delivery to another campus address. We encourage the use of reusable interoffice envelopes to help prevent campus mail from being mixed in with outgoing USPS mail. When sending campus mail, please mark the addressee's name, department/mail stop and building on the front of the envelope. Departmental mail stops can be found in the online directory. There are mail drops for both interoffice (on campus) and outgoing (off campus) mail around the Rensselaer campus. To prevent campus mail from being mixed with regular mail, the campus mail must be separated from other outgoing mail. If there is campus mail in special envelopes, such as invitations, please bundle the special mail and clearly mark it with a note as "Campus Mail."
Confidential matter should be mailed in a clean, plain, and sealed envelope. This prevents misdirection, mishandling, or loss due to previous markings or lack of proper security. To protect sensitive information, mark the envelope "Personal & Confidential," or "To be opened by Addressee Only." Include the addressee's full name, department, and building. Do not send cash or other valuables through campus mail. Make sure confidential and/or personal correspondence is sealed.
Campus mail envelopes are reusable envelopes, ideal for in-house mailings. When using a campus mail envelope, make certain that all previous markings have been masked out. This ensures proper handling and direction to the intended recipient. Do not write an address between previous markings. Write the current addressee's information in the first blank space after the most recent recipient's address.
Incoming Mail
Stop unwanted junk mail.
The Privacy Rights Clearinghouse provides information for removing your name and address from direct marketing and junk mail lists. Though it is virtually impossible to eliminate all junk mail, you can substantially reduce the amount of junk mail you receive.
Note regarding mail to former employees.
Mail to former employees will be sent on to their former department. It is the department's responsibility to decide what is done with a former employee's mail. We will only forward or return the mail after the department has seen the mail piece and returned the mail piece to Mail Services.
Recent national events have raised concern about how to recognize and handle suspicious mail or packages.
What is suspicious? Typical characteristics:
- Mail from someone unfamiliar to you. Know your sender.
- Has no return address, or one that cannot be verified as legitimate.
- Has unusual weight, is lopsided, is oddly shaped, and is oddly sealed.
- Has strange odors or stains.
- May be marked “Rush,” “Personal,” “Confidential,” etc.
- Shows a city or postmark that does not match the return address.
- If you think it is suspicious, treat it as suspicious.
Unopened mail that appears to be suspicious:
- DO NOT OPEN IT.
- Leave the package or letter where it is. Do not pass the letter or package to others. Call Public Safety immediately at ext. 6611. Off-campus, dial 911. Wash your hands with soap and water.
- Wait nearby for the Public Safety officer.
- The Public Safety officer will decide what further precautionary steps are to be taken, if any.
If you have opened mail that contains something suspicious:
- Do not try to clean up the contents (powder).
- Cover the spilled contents immediately with anything (e.g., clothing, paper, trash can, etc.). Do not remove this cover.
- Leave the room and close the door, or section off the area to prevent others from entering. Try to isolate yourself.
- Wash your hands with soap and water to prevent spreading any powder to your face. Do not touch eyes, nose or mouth.
- Call Public Safety immediately at ext. 6611. Off-campus, dial 911. Wait nearby.
- You will receive immediate directions and help.
- Remain calm. Do not panic.
The Department of Public Safety will coordinate with local law enforcement and fire officials.
Outgoing Mail
This is valuable information for students, staff, and faculty who send their mail through Rensselaer Mail Services. These are the guidelines established by the USPS (United States Postal Services) for addressing mail. These guidelines should be observed for all mail, including campus mail.
Envelopes
The size of an envelope should properly accommodate its contents. There are basically two categories of envelopes used by the USPS: letter size and flats.
Letter Size
Letter size mail must be rectangular for automated processing by the USPS. To ensure prompt and efficient processing of First Class mail, observe the following guidelines:
- All envelopes and cards must be sealed or secured on all four edges so the machines can handle them.
- The height of the envelope must be at least 3 1/2" and no more than 6".
- The length of the envelope must be at least 5" and no more than 10 1/2".
Flats
Large mail pieces must be sorted without bending so they remain flat. Flat-size mail exceeds at least one of the letter size maximums, but is restricted to the following dimensions:
- Length: 5" to 11 1/2"
- Height: 6 1/8" to 12"
- Thickness: 1/4" to 3/4"
- Weight: no more than 16 ounces
- Separate all International mail from Domestic mail.
- Separate Campus, Stamped, and Metered mail.
- Large mailings must be in postal service trays or buckets. Our driver has a supply of these containers on the truck, or call us and we will drop off as many as you need. Our driver will not pick up mail in any other container.
- Have your departmental account code on your mail. For larger mailings, the account code is only needed on the top piece of mail.
- Rubber band as much mail as possible.
- Include name, building, and department on Inter-Campus mail.
- Please call ahead for large mailings.
By following these steps, your mail can be processed quickly and accurately.
Some things cannot be mailed or can be mailed only in small quantities for safety and legal reasons. Also, some items can jam or damage the mailing machines and can cause serious injury to the Mail Center employees and equipment. The U.S. Postal Service® lists the following items:
- Aerosol cans
- Alcoholic beverages
- Ammunition
- Drug paraphernalia
- Fireworks
- Flammable or explosive materials
- Glass chips
- Illegal or infectious substances
- Metal pieces
- Lottery tickets
- Paper clips
- Poisonous materials
- Sand
Envelopes and cards less than 3-1/2" in height or 5" in length are also classified as non-mailables and may be returned to sender. Also, all foreign countries impose various restrictions. It is recommended that when mailing questionable items to U.S. or foreign destinations, the sender should call the Mail Service Center at ext. 6292 or Student Mail Center at ext. 2707 for assistance. Visit the USPS® website for further information.
The United States Postal Service allows you to calculate postage right from your computer for Domestic, International and Business postage if you know the size, shape, weight and zip code information.
Go to USPS® postage calculating services
Go to USPS® Rates and Fees
Postage Savings Tips
- Screen your mailing list for unnecessary names, duplicates and incomplete addresses.
- Use “Certified™” instead of “Registered™” mail whenever possible. It costs less and also provides a receipt and notice of delivery to the sender.
- Do not over-insure. The post office and UPS® will pay only the actual value of an item, not the declared value.
- Use postcards for short messages or announcements. The cost is 1/3 less than sending an envelope.
- Combine mailings when possible into a larger envelope for distribution at the location.
- Use Business Reply™ envelopes provided by vendors, instead of department envelopes.
- Fax the information instead of using Express mail™ when time is crucial.
- Request Library™, Book™ or Media Mail™ rate whenever possible. Savings can be as much as 50% of the cost of 1st Class™ mail.
- Use inter-office envelopes for on-campus mail. Use regular business envelopes for off-campus mailings only.
- Use Non-profit/Bulk Rate™ whenever possible; savings can be as much as 20 cents per mail piece.
The Rensselaer Mail Service uses the U.S. Post Office's Priority Mail Express™ for our overnight delivery service. It is their fastest domestic service, with limited exceptions, available 365 days a year.™
When sending mail internationally, it is important that your letter or parcel be properly addressed. All parcels, packages, and padded envelopes must have the proper completed Customs Forms attached, before sending via the RPI Mail Services. Please click on the link to this website, to find out which form you will need. For more information on Customs Forms with the US Postal Service, please click here.
Below are some guidelines to ensure that your mail arrives at its destination:
- It is recommended that you print your delivery addresses in all uppercase letters. If possible, addresses should have no more than five lines.
- The full address should be typed or legibly written in English — using Roman letters and Arabic numeral — on only one side of the item. An address in a foreign language is permitted if the names of the city, province, and country are also indicated in English.
- The last line of the address block area must include only the complete country name (no abbreviations) written in uppercase letters.
- Foreign postal codes, if used, should be placed on the line above the destination country. Some countries prefer that the postal code follow the name, while others prefer that it precede the city or town name. For example:
LINE 1: NAME OF ADDRESSEE
LINE 2: STREET ADDRESS OR POST OFFICE BOX NUMBER
LINE 3: CITY/TOWN NAME, PRINCIPAL SUBDIVISION AND POSTAL CODE
LINE 4: COUNTRY NAME
- As a precaution, senders should place a card with the names and addresses of the sender and addressee inside parcels.
- Using a return address on all mail is strongly recommended. Your name and address, including ZIP Code and country of origin, should be shown in the upper left corner of the address side on all mail. This ensures that an undeliverable item can be returned, if necessary.
Restrictions for international mail
Some items are prohibited from being mailed internationally by the either the country of origin, the destination country, or both. The United States Postal Service provides online information regarding nonmailable domestic items and the individual country prohibitions, restrictions and limitations.