FAQ - Graduating Students Issues
Frequently asked questions about Graduating Students Issues. If you have a question that you would like to be added to this list, let us know your suggestion by filling out the online form.
Graduating Students Issues
• I am not graduating this year. Will I have access to my HMS email account and
other services? (online storage space, web hosting, etc.)
• Can I maintain my HMS email account if I transition to an on-quad HMS
faculty or non-casual FT/PT staff role?
• Can I maintain my HMS email account if I transition to a faculty role (such as
an intern, resident, or post-doc) at an HMS-affiliated hospital?
• How can I obtain a post.harvard.edu "email forwarding" account?
• Is it possible to download my existing mail to my personal computer before my
HMS email account is disabled?
• Can I maintain my MyCourses/eCommons account if I transition to an on-quad HMS
faculty or non-casual FT/PT staff role?
• If I do not officially transition to a faculty role until or after July
31st, can I prevent my MyCourses/eCommons account from being disabled beginning from the
transition period through the official start date of my on-quad faculty role?
• Whom do I contact with questions about my HMS accounts?
Graduating Students Issues
I am not graduating this year. Will I have access to my HMS email account and other services? (online storage, website, etc.)
If your student status in the Registrar's Office correctly states that you will not be graduating this year, your HMS email account and other services will not be deactivated. Call the appropriate Registrar's office to see what your status is.
Can I maintain my HMS email account if I transition to an on-quad HMS faculty or non-casual FT/PT staff role?
Yes, if you are transitioning to a new role at HMS that is your primary employment such as an on-quad faculty or non-casual FT/PT staff position, your account will not change, and you will maintain your HMS email account.
Can I maintain my HMS email account if I transition to a faculty role, but my primary employment is at an HMS-affiliated hospital?
No, unfortunately the HMS email policy guidelines require that an off-quad appointed faculty member employed by an affiliated institution obtain and use an employer-supplied email address such as @bidmc, @caregroup, @partners, etc. and therefore do not qualify for an HMS email account.
How can I obtain a post.harvard.edu "email forwarding" account?
Email accounts for all June HMS/HSDM/DMS/HST graduates will be deactivated on
July 31st. A recommended course of action is as follows:
1. Obtain a new email account (such as @yahoo, @hotmail, or at your new place of work).
2. Sign up for email forwarding for life ASAP (*See details below.) - This will give you an email
address of yourname@post.harvard.edu
3. Update your Post.Harvard Forwarding account to point to this new email account.
4. Inform all your friends, family and other contacts of your new email address at
yourname@post.harvard.edu before July 31st.
5. Forward any mail that you want to save to your new email account. See more information on
Email Forwarding for Life! program below.
Questions regarding your Post.Harvard forwarding account can be submitted online at
http://www.aad.harvard.edu/help/html/feedback_help.html. Additional questions regarding
the deactivation of your HMS e-mail account can be directed to Student Computing Support
at support@student.hms.harvard.edu
Email Forwarding for Life!
Graduating students can check if they are eligible to register for Post.Harvard
at https://post.harvard.edu/olc/pub/HAA/register/register.cgi.
Continue following the remaining steps at the Post.Harvard site to complete your registration.
If you experience any problems with
registration or logging into your account, please email the staff of Post.Harvard at
haa_alumnihelp@harvard.edu or call 617-496-0559. You can also view their help section at
http://post.harvard.edu/harvard/help/html/helpmain.html
NOTE: Post.Harvard e-mail forwarding is not an
email account, and it will not replace your current e-mail Internet Service Provider (ISP) or
your Harvard (FAS/HMS) e-mail account. Messages sent to your
Post.Harvard address are forwarded to an e-mail account that you provide.
Is it possible to download my existing mail to my personal computer before my HMS email account is disabled?
Yes, if you have graduated and would like to save your emails from your HMS
Exchange account, you need to do the following:
1. You need a desktop email client such as Eudora 5.2.1, MS Outlook 2002, Entourage v10
on your home computer.
2. Configure your desktop email client
settings to use sIMAP which allows you to see a
reflection of your emails and subfolders on the HMS Exchange server. See
http://ecomputing.med.harvard.edu/config_email_clients.asp for configuration settings of
desktop email clients using sIMAP.
3. Once you set up your HMS_IMAP account via your desktop email client, then just drag and
drop your emails that you want to save onto your computer. Most desktop email clients will
show a local Inbox folder that allows for saving emails onto your computer's hard drive.
Can I maintain my MyCourses/eCommons account if I transition to an on-quad HMS faculty or non-casual FT/PT staff role by July 31st?
Yes, your eCommons/MyCourses account will carry over with your new role for either on-quad or off-quad locations. No change is necessary.
If I do not officially transition to a faculty role until or after July 31st, can I prevent my MyCourses/eCommons account from being disabled for the transition?
Yes, if you are transitioning to an on-quad HMS faculty or non-casual
FT/PT staff role in the near future, you may request a delay in terminating your
MyCourses/eCommons account for an additional 60 days. Please contact the Student Computing
Support Desk via email support@student.hms.harvard.edu prior to July 31st.
Whom do I contact with questions about my HMS accounts?
You can contact the Student Computing Support Desk at:
Email: support@student.hms.harvard.edu