U.S. Mail

Most of the University’s U.S. Mail is delivered to the primary processing facility at 28 Travis Street in Allston.  It is then sorted, entered into our tracking system (where applicable) and delivered to most University addresses in Cambridge and Boston.  HUMS will pick up outgoing U.S. Mail, with or without postage, from any delivery point. The U.S. Postal Service delivers some of Harvard’s U.S. Mail to campus via traditional postal carriers. 

Interoffice Mail

Faculty, students and staff have access to the University's interoffice mail system which spans the Cambridge, Allston and Longwood campuses. We deliver interoffice mail to Harvard departments daily by HUMS trucks as well as individuals on bicycles and walking routes.  Mail received by HUMS employees is delivered to the primary processing facility at 28 Travis Street in Allston.  It is then sorted and delivered to the HUMS drop-off point at Harvard schools and departments within 24 hours.  Interoffice mail customers may request one, two or three deliveries daily.  Currently, most offices choose to receive one delivery/pickup per day.

We keep an inventory of interoffice envelopes on hand and can provide them to departments on request.  We will also pick up excess interoffice envelopes and will make sure that they are reused.  If you require interoffice envelopes or would like a supply removed please contact us by email or 496-MAIL (6245).   

Courier Service

Packages and important documents can be brought quickly by courier from one Harvard office to another, throughout the Cambridge and Allston campuses. We offer special courier services on demand with confirmation of delivery.  Click here for more information.

The HUMS Information Desk

The HUMS Information Desk can provide assistance forwarding incorrectly addressed or insufficiently addressed U.S. and interoffice mail sent to Harvard University campus addresses. The Information Desk can be reached at 496-MAIL (6245) or by email.

Changing your Campus Address

If you are relocating from one campus address to another please use the following information regarding changing of mailing address:

You cannot submit a USPS change of address for your University address as the post office will not forward mail within the Harvard campus.  HUMS can handle departmental forwarding. We do recommend contacting important mailers (i.e. Magazine and journal subscriptions) to alert them of your new address.

Your human resource department will change your address in PeopleSoft, however it may take some time as your job location change navigates the system and this potentially could delay your mail delivery. You can easily make this change yourself by using the following instructions:

• The navigation to do this in PeopleSoft is: Self Service > Personal Information>Home & University Mail Address. When the addresses display, select “Edit” at the end of the University mailing address. You can then select the appropriate location; the advanced lookup function will let you search by description, which is generally the street address. (If your location is not in the lookup, please contact your HR administrator for assistance.) Your change will then be reflected in the online directory.

If an entire department is moving, in many cases a department administrator will contact HUMS with address changes. HUMS will then be able to immediately forward mail.

If you would like further information about changing your address or mail delivery, please contact us at: hums@harvard.edu

Costs for Services

Costs for U.S. and interoffice mail delivery, and for the Information Desk, are recovered directly through yearly assessments to customers, which are based on average mail volumes and frequency of delivery. Costs for all other services are recovered through hourly rates or fixed cost agreements with customers. For information about rates and services HUMS can provide, please contact us at 496-MAIL (6245) or by email.