New Student Links

Congratulations on your acceptance into the Graduate Studies in Business program. We are excited for your start of graduate school and hope the following information will aid you as you get acclimated to Mississippi State University.

As a new student, there are several things you must do before classes start. First, you must log in to Banner, which is the student information system used by MSU. Then you can activate your e-mail account, check your account for holds, and register for classes. Once you have registered for classes you will be able to apply for a parking permit and upload your resume to the Career Services Web site. Below are the instructions to follow for each of the above-mentioned tasks.

Accessing and navigating Banner
Through the Banner system, you are able to register for classes, check your class schedule and grades, register for a parking permit, check your student account and pay your tuition bill, find your NetID, set up your student e-mail account, and much more. You can access Banner by clicking here. From the log-in page, click on “Lookup NetID?” and follow the instructions. Once you have your NetID, follow the instructions for accessing the system for the first time here. Read the “Logging into Banner” section and click on NetPassword Maintenance to begin.

Activating your official university e-mail account
Once in the Banner system, you need to activate your official MSU e-mail account. Your e-mail address will be NetID@msstate.edu. To activate your official MSU account, follow the instructions found here. This e-mail address is the only way that university administration, the GSB office, and teachers will contact you. After you setup your e-mail account, please take a few minutes to update and/or confirm your personal information. (Note, you must do this or the system will NOT allow you to register for classes.) Once your account has been set up, you may access it at http://webmail.msstate.edu/.

If you would like to use another e-mail address as your primary means of contact, you have the option to have all MSU e-mail messages forwarded to any e-mail account you presently use (i.e. work account, Hotmail, or AOL). To have your mail forwarded follow the instructions found here.

Checking your account for holds
You can check for holds on your account through Banner. To do this, click on Students while in the main menu. Under the heading of Registration, click on View Your Holds for the holds that currently exist on your account. You must clear all the holds on your account in order to register for classes. To clear holds, you must contact the department that issued the hold to have it removed. The GSB office cannot remove holds from your account.

Registering for classes
You can register for class through Banner. To do this, click on Students from the main menu. Under the heading Registration, click on Register for Classes. Choose the semester for which you are registering and then enter your RAC number when prompted. Once you enter your RAC number, you do not need to enter it again. To get your RAC number, you must contact the GSB office. Once you are at the main registration screen, you can choose to add classes one at a time or build a schedule. If you need assistance after you’ve accessed the registration page, please contact the GSB office at (662) 325-1891.

Applying for a parking permit
After you have registered for classes, you are able to register online for a parking permit. To do this, access your Banner account and click Personal Information from the main menu. Then click on Vehicle Registration and follow the given instructions. Parking permits are $65 for a calendar year. More information about parking services can be found here. You must have a parking permit in order to park on the MSU campus.

If you are a graduate assistant, you can get a special permit that will allow you to park in any commuter or residential lot but this must be obtained from Parking Services directly. Parking services should have a list of all newly hired graduate assistants. If you want to make sure you get the correct permit, you may obtain a copy of your acceptance letter from Shanshan Pan in the Graduate Studies in Business Office that will serve as proof you are working as a GA.

Posting your resume online
After you have registered for classes, you are able to sign into the career center and post your resume online. To activate your account, click here and click on Connections Login in the upper-right corner of the top menu bar. You will log in using your NetID and password already created for Banner. After you log in, you can click on Documents from the top menu bar and add your most current resume. If you need assistance, follow the Career Services Tutorial here. It is important that you upload your resume in order to be considered for on-campus interviews and job openings.