Onboarding Timeline & Checklist

Welcome to the Michigan State University

College of Osteopathic Medicine!

This page walks you through the steps you’ll complete after accepting your seat, through Orientation, and before classes begin.

Last Updated: 5/21/2026

Flowchart with tasks and deadlines for MSU student admissions from October to June.

Keep scrolling for more details below!

October – April: Initial Steps

Accept Your Seat

After you receive an offer of admission, confirm your place in the class by completing all required steps: log into your admissions portal, indicate your site preference, submit the graduate school application, and pay your deposit. All steps must be completed to officially accept your seat and begin the onboarding process.

Become an MSU Student

After your deposit is processed, MSU will create your:

NetID (used to access MSU systems)
Spartan Mail (your official MSU email)
Student ID number & PAN (personal identifiers used for university records)

Please note that it may take up to two weeks for your information to be fully integrated into university-level systems. Once this process is complete, you will receive instructional emails from MSU for using your Student ID and PAN to activate your NetID and Spartan Mail account. Once your NetID is active, you will gain access to the Student Information System (SIS) and your assigned onboarding checklist. The onboarding checklist for Summer 2026 is expected to be available by March 1, 2026. MSUCOM will notify you when it is ready and will include a PDF worksheet as well. If you are a previous MSU student, you will keep the same student ID number and Spartan Mail address; you will just need to ensure both are active and ready to use.

Resolve Outstanding Admission Requirements

If you have any incomplete prerequisites or documentation during the admissions process, use this time to finalize and submit them – outstanding requirements information. Unresolved items may result in a HOLD on your account, which must be cleared before enrollment can be processed.

Provide F1 Visa Status (If Applicable)

International students should stay in close contact with the MSU Office of International Students and Scholars (OISS) and submit their F-1 visa status as soon as possible.

Important considerations:

The F-1 visa transfer cannot be requested until the first day of class is five months or less away – for MSUCOM, that means February since Orientation is in July.
Once eligible, the transfer process typically takes at least one month, even with a fully funded federal government.

Additional details and resources are available on the MSUCOM International Student Resources page.

Begin Health Compliance

Start by collecting your immunization history.
- If you are unsure where to locate your records, contact your primary care provider, previous schools, or state immunization registry.
  - The Michigan Immunization Portal is a useful resource for Michigan residents.
  - Refer to How to Find Your Immunization Record for additional assistance.
- See the MSUCOM Compliance webpage for detailed instructions for each vaccine and titer requirement.

Begin to Complete SIS OMED Checklist

To find your checklist, log in to SIS and navigate to:

Tasks tile → To Do Lists → Select the checklist titled OMED Prematriculation Checklist.

This checklist is automatically assigned based on your admission status.

Most checklist items will be reviewed and completed during the first portion of OST 501, which begins on June 22, 2026. This approach allows us to walk through key requirements together and ensure you have the most current information as you begin your training.

However, there are a few items that require your attention before OST 501 begins (see “Items You Need to Complete Early” below).

Important Note About Policies and Handbook Materials

Some checklist items reference the current Student Handbook and related policies available on the website.

Please note:

Updated versions of the Student Handbook and key policies are currently being finalized for your class
You will be directed to the most current versions during OST 501
You do not need to complete policy acknowledgements until instructed during the course

This ensures that all students are reviewing and acknowledging the same, most up-to-date information.

Digital Checklist vs. PDF Worksheet

A PDF worksheet version of the checklist will also be available for your convenience. The PDF is designed to help you work through items offline and avoid re-entering information each time you access the digital checklist. It is available to you in the admissions portal with other documents from COM Admissions.

Please note:

All students must complete and submit the official checklist in SIS
The PDF worksheet will not be accepted as your official submission
The PDF should be used only to prepare your responses before entering them into SIS

Because the SIS checklist requires confirmation of entries from beginning to end each time, using the PDF first can help prevent lost responses and streamline your final submission.

Items You Need to Complete Early

While most checklist items will be completed during OST 501, the following should be started as soon as possible:

Time-sensitive preparation:

Order required medical supplies
Order your embroidered white coat
Monitor and complete financial aid steps as they become available
Order and complete your background check and urine drug screen
Collect immunization records, titer reports, and TB screening documentation
Submit applications or documentation for RCPD accommodations (if applicable)

Additional administrative items:

Review health insurance requirements
Request your MSU student ID card

Completing these early will help ensure you are fully prepared to begin OST 501 and avoid delays later in the onboarding process.

May: Enrollment Begins & Compliance Continues

Clear HOLDS

All HOLDS on student accounts must be resolved before mid-May to allow enrollment. HOLDS may be placed due to:

Incomplete prerequisites
Unresolved billing statements
Missing documentation
University parking violations

Enrollment Processed

Your enrollment will be completed by the COM Registrar Team each semester—no action needed on your part.
Do not attempt to add or drop courses on your own.
Once enrolled, your updated billing statement will appear in SIS under the Student Accounts tile. This confirms your enrollment for the semester.
Enrollment is required for medical liability insurance and participation in MSUCOM courses and rotations.

Finalize Health Compliance

Use this time to finalize your immunization records and complete any required antibody titers.

Important notes:

Some vaccines – such as Hepatitis B – require a completed series and a positive surface antibody titer.
If your Hepatitis B surface antibody titer is negative, you must receive a booster, then repeat the titer at least 28 days later.
Delaying this process until Orientation may result in non‑compliance and unnecessary stress during your first weeks of medical school.

Begin Accommodations Process (If Applicable)

Michigan State University’s Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities (RCPD) supports students and employees with disabilities in accessing accommodations and other needed resources. RCPD also collaborates with instructors to ensure that approved accommodations are implemented appropriately. Future/prospective students and their supporters are welcome to contact RCPD at any time.

If you believe you may need learning accommodations, please begin the process with RCPD as early as possible.

Important considerations:

The accommodation process takes time. Gathering and submitting required documentation can be lengthy, so starting early is essential.
Accommodations should be in place before classes begin. The first semester moves quickly, with quizzes and exams starting early.
Applying for medical board exam accommodations requires a separate process. Your MSU RCPD specialist can help you prepare your application for board exam accommodations after completing your first year of medical school.

May – June: Final Steps

Complete SIS OMED Checklist

Between May and June, you must complete the remaining items in your OMED Prematriculation Checklist:

Criminal background check
Urine drug screen
Health & Medical Compliance requirements, including:
- Immunization history
- Required vaccine booster dose(s), if applicable
- Antibody titers
- TB screening

Remember the MSUCOM Compliance webpage will provide you with additional information, like:

Step-by-step vaccine and titer instructions
Guidance on organizing and uploading documentation
Support from the COM Compliance Team, will become available during OST 501; and prior to, on an individual basis for students with unique situations who reach out to COM.Compliance@msu.edu.

Closer to Orientation, you will receive instructions for registering with the third-party immunization tracker used by MSUCOM. All health and medical compliance documents must be uploaded to this system before you are considered fully compliant.

These screenings confirm your eligibility to matriculate. Final reports must be submitted during May and June.

Compliance is ongoing and must be maintained throughout your time at MSUCOM.

Attend to Financial Aid & Billing

Accept your financial aid package in SIS (if applicable)
Review and resolve monthly billing statements to avoid late fees and enrollment HOLDS

Medical Equipment & Supplies

Throughout medical school, you will need specific equipment for labs, skills training, and clinical activities. Some items are required at the start of the program, while others may be purchased later as needed. Your first‑semester budget includes funds for these required supplies. Because financial aid is disbursed just before the start of classes, students are encouraged to purchase the required items during that time, when the allocated funds become available.

Medical Equipment – Required & Recommended

A list of required and recommended Medical Equipment & Supplies has been curated by MSUCOM faculty in collaboration with Steele Medical Supply and is available here.

While the listed items reflect configurations available through Steele, students are welcome to purchase equivalent items from other vendors or borrow equipment from family or friends (if appropriate and in good working condition). Regardless of how items are obtained, students are responsible for ensuring they have all required equipment prior to the first day of anatomy.

Additional ordering guidance, including recommended timeframes and any available vendor-specific options, will be shared to help support your planning.

MSUCOM Name Tag – Required

Provided by MSUCOM
Name tags will be ordered during OST 501 as part of the Prematriculation Checklist (Student ID item)
Ordering will be available beginning 6/22/2026

Please complete your order as soon as possible once OST 501 becomes available to ensure timely processing.

MSUCOM Embroidered White Coat – Required

Provided by MSUCOM
Ordering will be available beginning 5/18/2026
Ordering is managed centrally to ensure accurate site-specific delivery; ordering links will not be publicly posted
Deadline to order: Thursday, 6/18/2026
White coats will be distributed later in the summer semester, prior to Convocation

If your COM site changes during the summer, do not be concerned – your white coat will be routed appropriately.

Other Helpful Items – Optional

These items can be useful throughout the year, but you do not need them before classes begin. Many students wait until Fall when student organizations and vendors offer discount codes.

Scrubs – Required & Optional

Required: One set of scrubs for Anatomy Lab – which is included on the Medical Equipment & Supplies list above.
Optional: Scrubs are helpful for other labs and practical exams, but loose-fitting clothing works well too.
Tip: Student organizations often share a Fall discount code (e.g., Jaanuu). Consider waiting before purchasing multiple sets.

OMM Table – Optional

Some students choose to purchase an OMM table for home practice.
MSUCOM typically offers a Fall discount specifically for COM students.

MSUCOM Branded Gear – Optional

Want to get your Sparty on?
Visit the official MSUCOM Merchandise Store to browse COM‑branded apparel, accessories, and spirit gear. It’s a fun way to show your Spartan DO pride throughout the year.

Additional Resources

Onboarding Definitions & Guidance

Admission – is the process of a medical school selecting and accepting applicants to its program. After you accept your seat in the class, it is also the term the University uses to describe the process of entering an applicant’s information into the University’s system, thus making them an official MSU student. There are also several Admissions Offices that help students matriculate into the program.

COM Admissions – the College’s Admission Team which reviewed your applications, conducted interviews, final selections, and provide offers to students.

GRAD Admissions – the Graduate School at MSU has its own Admissions Team which helps facilitate COM student admission between COM Admissions and Central Admissions.

Central Admissions – this is the main Admissions Team for the entire University, they help to first make incoming students MSU students before they can be designated as COM students.

Compliance Information – see MSUCOM Compliance website for more information, including a designated Compliance Definitions & Guidance section.

Convocation – For incoming medical students, convocation is an official welcome that marks the beginning of their journey into the profession of medicine. At MSUCOM this includes your White Coat Ceremony and recitation of the Osteopathic oath.

Osteopathic Oath – This is the oath that you will recite with your MSUCOM classmates during your Convocation & White Coat Ceremony. This oath is your pledge to the profession and can also be found in the MSUCOM Student Professionalism Policy you attest to, or attested to, during matriculation.

White Coat Ceremony – This is a common and emotionally significant type of convocation for first-year medical students. They are presented with their first white coat as a symbol of their entry into the medical community.

HOLD – This is a designation that students may encounter on their student account. Reasons for HOLDs include such things as: late tuition payments, unpaid parking tickets, overdue library books etc. Consequences for a HOLD can vary depending on the HOLD type but typically include preventing enrollment adjustments (add or drops), which effects the MSUCOM staff that process your enrollment, therefore, MSUCOM may reach out to have you clear your hold immediately to allow necessary enrollment adjustments to take place. You must be enrolled to participate.

Immunization Information – see MSUCOM Compliance webpage for more information, including a designated Compliance Definitions & Guidance section.

Learning Accommodations – see Disability Services webpage for more information.

Matriculation – The formal process of being admitted to a degree-granting program, while enrollment is the process of registering to take specific courses. You must be matriculated to be enrolled in courses. Enrollment can be a temporary status, such as for non-degree courses, whereas matriculation implies a commitment to a full academic program.

MSU NetID – this is one of the unique identifiers that the University will utilize to identify you in various systems and applications. Your NetID is the portion of your Spartan Mail address before the @msu.edu.

MSUCOM sites at 3 locations – Learn about our three sites here.

East Lansing (EL)

Detroit Medical Center (DMC)

Macomb University Center (MUC)

Onboarding – is a term often used in medical programs to describe the process of becoming a part of the community or system, medical students will onboard into their medical school program and then they will continue to onboard into different medical systems based on their chosen career path, e.g. hospital onboarding, practice onboarding, residency onboarding etc.

Orientation – a mandatory program for new students that serves as a multi-faceted introduction to the institution, the curriculum, and the medical profession itself. It helps incoming students transition from their prior academic backgrounds into the demanding and culturally specific environment of medical education. The process typically consists of three main components: practical, social, and cultural.

PAN – this is a number that will be sent to you upon admission to assist you with activating your NetID and Spartan Mail.

Student ID number – this is a unique, 9-digit personal identification number that is assigned to a student upon entering the MSU University system. Previous MSU students will maintain the same Student ID #. Also known as: PID, empl ID, ID, ZIP. Previously known as: APID.

Pre-work – A term used by MSUCOM to refer to readings, assignments, etc. that are expected to be completed by the student prior to a scheduled course session.

Rolling Admission – An application process where a college accepts applications in a large window until the class is full; MSUCOM’s window is October – June.

SIS OMED Checklist – this is the checklist that is assigned to students upon admission to the College. The checklist should be completed as soon as possible upon being assigned to the student. Checklist items include: Administrative Requirements, Agreements & Attestations, Compliance Requirements, and Health & Medical Requirements.

Spartan Mail – your Spartan Mail is your unique email address used by the College and University to send official communications. All students should regularly check their Spartan Mail and take appropriate actions. It is not recommended to forward your Spartan Mail to another service provider because some official messages may be missed – students who choose to forward their email to another service are expected to ensure they are receiving all messages, and any missed messages are not to be excused.

Student Information System (SIS) – this is system the University utilizes to maintain your official student academic record. Students will use this system to update their personal information and verify their enrollment each semester.

Vaccination Information – see MSUCOM Compliance website for more information, including a designated Compliance Definitions & Guidance section.