Navigating Mailroom Services at Boston College: A Comprehensive Guide

The influx of packages on college campuses has increased significantly in recent years, and Boston College is no exception. With a student population spread across various locations, understanding the mailroom services is essential for a smooth academic year. This guide provides up-to-date information about package delivery, addresses, and important procedures to ensure efficient handling of your mail and packages at Boston College.

Package Delivery Overview

Boston College currently processes approximately 280,000 packages annually for on-campus students. The mailroom staff works diligently to manage this high volume, especially during peak periods such as the beginning of each semester. During the first week of school every semester, Boston College students are blessed with syllabus week, leaving ample free time for traversing the deep web for cheaper textbook alternatives, clicking through pages of “dorm room essentials,” and calling home to ask for everything that was forgotten. There has been a noticeable shift from packing up cars and driving belongings to college to hopping on the plane and leaving the rest to online orders. The efficient handling of these packages is a priority to ensure students receive their items on time.

Addressing Your Packages Correctly

Proper addressing is crucial for timely package processing. Always use the student's name as registered at Boston College. Nicknames or alternate names can delay processing and may result in packages being returned to the sender.

Package Size and Weight Restrictions

Packages weighing more than 50 pounds (22.7 kg) cannot be accepted for delivery to campus addresses. This restriction helps manage the logistics and ensures the safety of mailroom staff.

Specific Delivery Locations and Procedures

Boston College has multiple locations for package delivery and pickup, depending on the student's residence and package size.

In-Room Delivery

At the beginning of the fall semester move-in period, packages received prior to Friday, August 15, 2025, will be placed directly into student rooms. There is a limit of 4 packages per student that can be delivered directly to your room. These should be essential items such as bedding, refrigerators, and microwaves. It is recommended that smaller items be shipped to your home address and consolidated into larger boxes for in-room delivery.

Note that due to the high volume of packages in August and September, there may be a delay in package processing of up to 2 weeks. Immediate access to shipped items may not be possible during this time.

Locker System

Packages that are not oversized will be placed in lockers. These lockers are accessible 24 hours a day, providing flexibility for students to retrieve their items. Packages in lockers must be retrieved within 48 hours; otherwise, they will be returned to the sender.

Oversized Packages

Oversized packages can be retrieved Monday-Friday from 9:00 am-5:00 pm. Students must present their Emerson ID to pick up oversized packages. After notification, students have 5 business days to pick up their package from storage. Unclaimed packages will be returned to the sender after this period.

Amazon Lockers

Amazon maintains four banks of lockers on campus for the convenience of the Boston College community. These lockers can be selected as delivery points when placing orders through Amazon.

Key Locations

Walsh Hall Room 128: Packages can be picked up at this location.
"BENCH" on Lower Campus: Located at 90 St.
66 Commonwealth Ave 90 St and 150 St: Additional locations for mail services.

Addressing Changes

Note that your address will change every year. This address is the address you will use the entire time you reside on campus.

Medication Shipments

The best way to ship medications to campus is through University Health Services. To ensure proper handling and secure delivery, please call 617-552-2659 to speak with a member of the Health Services staff.

Addressing the Package Deluge

“Typically, the first six weeks of every semester, we see a deluge of packages,” said Albert Travaglini, director of Facilities Services and BC ’73. “Everyone moves in. With the demolition of Edmond’s Hall, which housed 775 people, came the acquisition of 2000 Commonwealth Avenue and the construction of Thomas More Apartments, which house 490 and 515 people, respectively. Thomas More Rd., and Vanderslice Hall; and the newest addition, Walsh, which serves Walsh, Stayer Hall, The Mods, Greycliff Hall, 2000 Comm. This is an 11 percent increase in population served, and an eight percent increase in number of packages. “From Aug. 15 until Sept. 17, we’ve handled a total of 32,676 packages with nine staff people.” Travaligni said. There are nine staff people in total. “We might get seven, eight, nine hampers of packages in a morning,” Travaligni said. “We work as diligently and efficiently and patiently as we can, and one by one we scan and report to the student that the package is in our possession. Then, UPS shows up when they show up. It should be noted, Travaligni added, that when an online tracker says that a package has been delivered to BC, it may be just dropped off at the Newton central facility, or it may be waiting for shelf space inside a trailer. Amid the record package influx, second and third notices were delayed in getting into the system by IT staff. Travaligni said that last year, students were much more efficient about retrieving their packages. on Monday and Tuesday. The response was tremendous. Their delivery rate essentially doubled.

Additional Information

Messina College Students: Will reside on Brookline Campus.
Newton and Upper Campus Residents: Large packages (minimum 2 cu ft) arriving by August 16 will be placed directly into student rooms.

Read also: History of the BU Bridge

tags: #boston #college #mailroom #services