Know before you go!
Here's what you need to know as you begin your M State career.
Success navigators
Need help? Success navigators are here to help new first-year students.
Services and support
The Accessibility Resources Office partners with faculty, staff and students to remove disability-related educational barriers through reasonable accommodations for qualified students.
For more information on services, campus contacts and applying for services:
M State Career Services provides students with access and opportunity to develop a personalized career track, connect with employers and job openings, and obtain job search support to build a foundation for your next step toward employment or continuing education.
The counselors at M State are here to help with any situation that may interfere with the success of students. All services are free of charge to students.
Our counseling services include:
Career counseling
- Career interest and personality assessments
- Skills and values clarification
- Online career resources
- Identification of barriers to career success
Personal counseling
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Grief/loss
- Relationship issues
- Sexual identity
- Assertiveness skills
- Self-esteem issues
- Learning from your mistakes
- Drug/alcohol abuse
- Eating disorders
- Transition to college
- Physical/sexual/emotional abuse
Academic counseling
- Academic warning, probation or suspension
- Learning strategies
- Stress management
- Test anxiety
- Learning styles
- Study skills
- Time management
You have a variety of housing options, depending on which of our four campuses you attend.
The M State campus libraries are available to help students with a wide range of services, including:
- Computer labs with desktop and laptop computers
- Printing, scanning and photocopying
- Reference support -- both on-site and virtual
- Test proctoring (by appointment)
- Study rooms
Library hours vary by campus.
M State college social workers are available to assist with learning about and accessing resources such as:
- Housing
- Finances
- Legal
- Safety
- Childcare
- Transportation
- Health and wellness
- Food and nutritional needs
Social workers' services include:
- Assistance with forms
- Assistance with applications
- Referrals
- Mediation between students and social service systems
- Follow-ups to ensure start of services
M State has a regional coordinator who can assist veterans and their eligible family members with accessing the right benefits and educational programs. Get more information and find the benefits signup form:
M State students have access to FREE online tutoring to support their academic success. Receive virtual or on-campus support or visit the Center for Academic Writing and Reading. Learn more:
Technology
StarID is your unique username that provides you with single sign-on to many M State resources.
To activate your StarID or change or reset an expired password, visit StarID.
Once activated, you can use your StarID and password anywhere that accepts StarID. It is unique across all Minnesota state colleges.
Use your StarID to log in to:
- E-Services
- Campus computers
- Printing
- Wireless access
- D2L Brightspace
- Minnesota State resources
Your StarID password will expire every 180 days.
SpartanNet is your one-stop personal portal to all your college resources, including e-services, D2L Brightspace, email and more.
To log in to SpartanNet:
- Go to: minnesota.edu
- Click on the SpartanNet link, on the top right side of the page under "Quicklinks"
- Enter your StarID and StarID password
Once you are logged in, you will see links to: Go to class in D2L, Help links, E-services, tech support and email.
E-Services is a place for you to register for classes, check your degree audit, see your transcript, view final grades, review financial aid, pay your bills and much more. Log in to SpartanNet to access your E-Services.
D2L is the online course management tool instructors use to post your class information.
To access your D2L:
- Log in to SpartanNet
- Click on Go to Class in D2L
To see if your computer is compatible:
- Log in to your D2L through SpartanNet
- Click Technical Help from the drop-down menu and do a Systems Check to ensure your computer system is compatible and properly configured for D2L
- Click the Tools & Help Resources Tab to check computer requirements.
You can also access the How to Use D2L Brightspace Tutorial.
The most current browser versions of Edge, Firefox and Google Chrome are supported. IE 10 and older browsers are not supported.
M State campuses have computer labs available for student use. When signing into a campus computer, log in using your StarID and StarID password. Please note that classes may be taking place in labs. Please check before entering. Here's where labs are located:
Detroit Lakes: Library, G114 and Student Life
Fergus Falls: Library, L148 and S432
Moorhead: Library, D119, E119 and the Commons area
Wadena: Library and N11a
Students must save all files to a USB flash drive or online to OneDrive. The campus computers, once restarted, delete any saved information.
Email is the official means of communication at M State, and it is your responsibility to check email regularly. You will be required to set up multi factor authentication when you sign in for the first time. This keeps your email safe.
You'll need to wait until after you're registered to set up your student email.
To access your email:
- Log into SpartanNet
- On the left side of the page, click on the green Email & Office 365 button.
- Sign in using the email/username starid@go.minnstate.edu.
- Enter your SpartanNet password.
Your email address is structured as follows:
The quickest way to get help with a technology issue is to submit a ticket through SpartanNet or search the Help Site.
Are you wondering what computer to buy? Follow this link to find computer requirements for specific programs.
All students start with $12.50 of free printing credit each semester. Follow these links for more information on your printing credit and installing a campus printer. To check your print balance anytime, log into SpartanNet to see the printing balance displayed on your page.
Zoom is the official web conferencing tool for M State. Visit our Help site for information on installing, accessing and using Zoom.
Office 365 is available as a free download for all M State students at Office 365 for Students.
Campus computer help centers can be contacted at:
- Detroit Lakes - 218.846.3764
- Fergus Falls - 218-736-1656
- Moorhead - 218.299.6600
- Wadena - 218.631.7873
Paying for college
- Go to minnesota.edu.
- Click on SpartanNet (under Quicklinks at top right).
- Log in using your Star ID and Star ID password.
- Click on E-Services (top-left on page).
- Click on Bills & Payment (menu on left).
- Select Account Detail (menu on left).
- Cash/check/credit card
- Financial aid
- Grants
- Loans
- Military benefits
- Outside agency funding
- Payment plan
- Scholarship(s)
- Work-study
Get more information:
- Go to www.minnesota.edu.
- Click on SpartanNet (top-right on page under Quicklinks).
- Log in using your Star ID and Star ID password.
- Click on E-Services (top-left on page).
- Click on Financial Aid (menu on left).
- Select Awards (menu on left).
- Apply for financial aid by submitting the FAFSA.
- Submit your Offer Letter.
- Review work-study positions at Work Study.
- Meet with the Financial Aid Office to determine your eligibility.
All Minnesota State colleges and universities have a tuition policy where a student's registration may be cancelled from their courses if specific payment criteria are not met. Learn more:
M State offers Nelnet/NBS as a convenient payment plan. Students can also enroll each semester in a payment plan option through E-Services via SpartanNet.
When you set up a payment plan, a deposit is required; so do not pay a deposit to the college also, as the payment to Nelnet meets the requirement to secure your classes.
Tuition payments are accepted at all M State campus stores by phone or in person. Payments are also accepted online in your E-Services account.
Yes! Find scholarships at:
There are many resources available when searching for external scholarships. Visit Federal Student Aid for strategies and tips.
Other resources may include (but are not limited to):
fastweb.com
scholarships.com
collegeboard.org
M State is also a North Star Promise Scholarship program-eligible institution, meaning Minnesota residents who attend M State may be eligible for this state-sponsored "last-dollar" tuition- and fee-free pathway to college. For full details, including eligibility requirements, visit North Star Promise.
If you want M State to be able to discuss your account with a family member or friend in regard to financial aid, billing issues or tax information, you will need to sign a Release of Information form:
To receive overage checks from financial aid or refunds more quickly, enroll in direct deposit through E-Services (in SpartanNet). The direct deposit link is found under Student Employment on your E-Service portal.
Filling out the FAFSA
Financial aid helps students and their families pay for college. Federal student aid from ED covers such expenses as tuition and fees, housing and food, books and supplies, and transportation. Aid can also help pay for other related expenses, such as a computer and dependent care. Thousands of schools across the country participate in the federal student aid programs. There are several types of financial aid including:
- Grants
- A grant is a form of financial aid that doesn’t have to be repaid (unless, for example, you withdraw from school and owe a refund, or you receive a TEACH Grant and don’t complete your service obligation). A variety of federal grants are available, including:
- Pell Grants,
- Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (FSEOG),
- Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grants, and
- Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants.
- A grant is a form of financial aid that doesn’t have to be repaid (unless, for example, you withdraw from school and owe a refund, or you receive a TEACH Grant and don’t complete your service obligation). A variety of federal grants are available, including:
- Scholarships
- Many nonprofit and private organizations offer scholarships to help students pay for college or career school. This type of free money, which is sometimes based on academic merit, talent, or a particular area of study, can make a real difference in helping you manage your education expenses.
- Work Study
- The Federal Work-Study Program allows you to earn money to pay for school by working part-time. You’ll earn at least the current federal minimum wage. However, you may earn more depending on the type of work you do and the skills required for the position. Your total work-study award depends on when you apply, your level of financial need, and your school’s funding level.
- Loans
- A loan is money you borrow and must pay back with interest. If you apply for financial aid, you may be offered loans as part of your school’s financial aid offer. When you receive a student loan, you are borrowing money to attend a college or career school. You must repay the loan as well as interest that accrues. It is important to understand your repayment options so you can successfully repay your loan.
Your financial aid offer may be a combination of these forms of aid. Learn more:
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the common application for all financial aid programs and must be completed each year that you seek financial aid.
To complete the FAFSA, you will need to create a Federal Student Aid (FSA) user ID and password, which will serve as your electronic signature. If you are a dependent student and parent data is required on the FAFSA, at least one parent should also apply for an FSA ID for the parent's electronic signature. If you do not already have one, you can create your FSA ID as part of the FAFSA application process.
M State's FAFSA code number is 005541. When you enter M State's code number, the city name of Fergus Falls will appear.
COMPLETE STEPS 1-3 to apply loan funds as a payment to student accounts:
- Submit loan request: Log into SpartanNet > E-Services > Financial Aid > Review & Respond to Award Notifications > Loans > Follow steps to accept and submit
- Complete entrance counseling at Federal Student Aid
- Complete Master Promissory Note (MPN), MPN for Subsidized/Unsubsidized Loans at Federal Student Aid
- Grant funding will automatically apply as payment to your student account.
- Apply for the Federal Direct Student Loans (if planning to use loans).
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