info.risd.edu

Hours of Operation

Counter Hours
Mon–Fri
10 am – 6 pm

Smart Lockers
Daily
6 am – 2 am

Mailing instructions for FIRST-YEAR students

First-year students will be assigned a box number by August 4^th. The notifications are via email, so be sure to monitor your new RISD email address for that information.

We have a partnership with a local UPS Store to assist with first-year students that are shipping packages to RISD in advance of move-in day. Consult this instruction form and use the following linked UPS mailing label. Packages may be shipped to this address up until August 21^st.

On move in day, the packages sent to the UPS STORE will be available for students to pick up in the RISD first-year residential area. You will not need to go off campus to retrieve them.

After August 21^st, begin shipping packages to the school mailroom at the address below. All packages should be shipped to the following address and MUST include the student’s assigned box number. Again, that number will be e-mailed to students by August 4^th via your new RISD email address.

[Student Name]
Rhode Island School of Design
20 Washington Place
Box # ______
Providence, RI 02903

Mailing items to RISD

All items shipped to students should be addressed as follows:

[Student Name]
Rhode Island School of Design
20 Washington Place
Box # ______
Providence, RI 02903

All items shipped to faculty and staff should be addressed as follows:

[Faculty/staff name]
Rhode Island School of Design [department name]
20 Washington Place
Providence, RI 02903

Please note:

1. RISD accepts deliveries from the following carriers: USPS, UPS, FedEx, Amazon and DHL. (Please do not ship any items via freight containers.)
2. Campus mail is best reserved for shipping clothing, books and other non-fragile items.
3. Do not ship perishable items by mail. The mailroom will not accept grocery items.
4. The mailroom will not accept items that are not securely packaged (e.g., in grocery bags).
5. Packages should be no larger than 24 x 24 x 24" and weigh no more than 70 lbs.
6. Use new boxes only. Damaged boxes can impede the delivery process.
7. Make sure labels are legible, easy to find and securely affixed to the package.
8. To minimize cost and potential damage, we recommend that incoming students bring electronics, stereos and similar items with them to campus rather than shipping by mail.
9. Similarly, students are advised to purchase televisions and larger appliances locally for safer and more cost-effective shipping.
10. Keep a copy of any tracking information you receive related to your shipment.

Graduate student mailboxes

Mailboxes will be automatically assigned only for grad students living on campus. Grad students who live off campus can request an assigned mailbox by emailing mailroom@risd.edu.

Outgoing mail

All outgoing mail should be ready for pickup during the time of daily mail delivery and should be separated in the following manner:

• Outgoing mail requiring postage should be grouped together with department account number.
• Certified Mail must be sealed and the proper USPS forms attached.
• Interoffice mail should be separated.
• Express and all expedited mail should be identified and affixed with an identifier.

Mail and Receiving Services uses the following approved carriers:

• USPS and all USPS-provided services: RISD client metered is applied on site in Mail Services department.
• UPS and FedEx: account numbers are available for department use for RISD client rate. Please contact Mail Services for these account numbers.
• When sending items internationally, please contact Mail and Receiving Services to make arrangements. If your outgoing parcel requires special arrangements (e.g. insurance or signature on delivery), please attach instructions.
• It is the sender’s responsibility to ensure items are appropriately packaged. Please do not overfill containers. Do not use damaged boxes for packaging purposes.

Graduating student mail forwarding

USPS mail forwarding is available to graduating students through Mail and Receiving Services. This service is only available for first-class mail forwarded to a US address. Please complete the RISD graduate mail forwarding form to use this service.

Freight deliveries (departments only)

Warehouse receiving hours
Tuesday–Friday, 9 am–3 pm or by appointment
Any freight delivery outside normal receiving hours and without a prescheduled appointment will be returned to sender. All costs associated with the return are the responsibility of the purchasing department.

For freight deliveries (deliveries made by tractor trailers and specialty delivery services) of more than 150 pounds or that require special equipment for unloading, it is the ordering office’s responsibility to inform Procurement Services if a PO is needed. The receiving address for freight deliveries is 350 Kinsley Avenue, Providence, RI 02903.

If you are ordering using a PO or RISD purchasing card, please note Mail and Receiving Services’ phone number, 401 454–6319, and email, mailroom@risd.edu.

In most cases involving palletized or oversized items, the purchasing department will be contacted upon delivery. The department will then submit a work request to ensure the necessary equipment and personnel needed to transport the shipment to campus are scheduled. The work request must include the desired delivery date, time (estimated) and location (building and room number).

RISD interoffice mail

Department interoffice, flat mail and small packages are delivered on Thursdays and Fridays from 10 am–2 pm, excluding university holidays and in the event of severe weather conditions. Emergency deliveries will be handled on an as-needed basis. Packages will be delivered after the initial mail run is completed. Signatures are required for packages. Department representatives may come to the mailroom to pick up mail at any time.

For each delivery of mail to an office or mail drop-off location, interoffice and outgoing mail is picked up for postage metering and distribution.