On Campus Mailing Guidelines

Interdepartmental mail is restricted to official University of Maryland, Baltimore business. If you are not certain if your mail qualifies as University business, contact the Mail Center postal manager for clarification on extension 6-3700. The examples listed below are considered to be misuse of campus mail:

• Chain letters
• Hate mail
• Mail with obscene content
• Information promoting business to gain profit
• Political endorsements
• Any correspondence that is not official University of Maryland, Baltimore business

To expedite handling of mail, Mail Services employees color-sort items to separate interdepartmental mail from First-Class mail. Items mailed in white First-Class envelopes are metered and sent to the USPS as quickly as possible without proofing the address. It is assumed the individual initiating the mail item has placed it in the proper envelope, interdepartmental vs. First Class, and used the appropriate addressing format.        

• Use only the manila or blue campus mail envelopes for interdepartmental mail.
• All interdepartmental mail must be separated from USPS First-Class Mail.
• Use white letterhead envelopes for USPS First-Class Mail requiring postage.

General Guidelines

Addressing Mail:

When possible, Type all outgoing U.S. Mail using use black ink on white paper.The U.S. Postal Service is utilizing automation. The envelope you mail will most likely be read by a multi-line Optical Character Reader (OCR). Your mail has a greater chance of reaching its destination with more speed and accuracy when read by an OCR than if it is handwritten and must be read by the human eye. The time allowed to process mail is so minimal that it is nearly impossible for the human eye to read and sort with the speed and accuracy of the OCR equipment.   

The mailing address should be typed in all capital letters. Use only the delivery address. Do not use the name of a building in place of a street address. If delivery is made to a street address, there is no need to include a post office box. ity names should be spelled out completely (i.e., BALTIMORE). Additional address information such as apartment, room, building, etc., should be placed on the same line as the street address with one space separating each word. Words such as apartment, building, floor, suite, room, and department should be abbreviated to the following: APT, BLDG, FLR, STE, RM, and DEPT. Do not use any punctuation in the address except for the hyphen in the ZIP + 4.  All lines of an address should have uniform left margins. Leave one character of space between words and the state abbreviation and ZIP code. No printing should be placed below the City/State/ZIP code line.  When addressing mail to a postmaster, include the post office name and delivery address.  

Campus Mail Guidelines:

All campus mailings that have address labels and consist of one single piece (single sheet of paper) must be folded and tabbed or placed in interoffice envelopes. Campus bulk mailings must be broken down by department, school, and building. Departments should notify the University of Maryland, Baltimore Mail Center at least two days before a bulk mailing. All forms for Certified, Express, Priority and Registered Mail must be completed by the campus department. Should a department require assistance to complete the forms, please contact the Mail Center. It is the responsibility of the department’s mail contact person to advise the Mail Center of any change-of-address information. This includes movement of employees to other campus departments as well as new employees or employees leaving the University System. Call the University of Maryland, Baltimore Mail Center on extension 6-6619, 6-5695, or fax 6-0759 with inquiries related to forms and/or mailing supplies.