CLIMB ABOARD
MSU’s Winter Express Online

What is MSU’s Winter Express?

Winter Express is part of MSU’s ongoing commitment to providing students with options to achieve their educational goals. Wherever you choose to spend the holidays, the online format allows you to be part of Winter Express.

What are the student benefits?

By enrolling in Winter Express, you can get a head start on the spring 2024 semester, finish core course requirements, take classes within majors or pick up extra credits to accelerate graduation. You also can explore new subject areas, concentrate on difficult courses and benefit from smaller classes taught by MSU’s world-class faculty. 

What are the dates for 2023-2024 winter session?

December 11, 2023 – January 12, 2024

Classes will not meet on the holidays, weekends or December 21, 22, 25.

Registration: November 6 – December 11
 

Are incoming and prospective students eligible to attend?

Absolutely. We’d love for new and prospective students to enroll. We are not encouraging first-time international students new to MSU to enroll in winter session.

What classes and professors will be available?

Current students may choose from an array of winter courses based on your campus of record, which is noted in the General Student Information tab in Banner. Please reference this table below to determine which campuses you are eligible to register for, depending on your campus of record. If you would like to take a course offered through another campus of record, you may request an override to take the course.

Be sure to check the master class schedule regularly as courses may be added up to the first day of classes.

Access MSU’s Courses for Winter

You’ll need to select “Spring Semester 2024” for Term and then “Winter Intersession” in the next drop-down, for Part of Term.

For questions regarding registration, please contact the Office of the Registrar. You can email us at registrar@registrar.msstate.edu or call 662.325.2022.

How many winter courses can a student take?

Due to the compressed nature of the winter session, a student may take no more than six hours. It is recommended that graduate students take no more than three hours. Only students in good academic standing should consider enrolling in winter session.

How does Winter Express work with the spring semester?

For purposes of tuition assessment, Winter Session is considered a separate term from the spring semester. Therefore, winter session credit hours are not included in the spring semester tuition cap. Winter session tuition is computed on a per-credit-hour basis, in addition to spring tuition. 
 
You may combine winter session* and spring semester hours to determine full time eligibility for financial aid and scholarships only.

* Any “W” grades or “F” grades earned because the student stopped attending will not be eligible for federal and/or state grant awards.

For purposes of financial aid eligibility, winter session is combined with the spring semester. Therefore, the total number of credit hours taken between winter session and the spring semester will be used to determine the amount of a student’s financial aid.

How much is tuition for winter session?

• Undergraduate (amount includes $4.17 capital improvement fee)
  • Resident: $406.92 (per credit hour)
  • Non-resident: $809.67 (per credit hour)
• Graduate (amount includes $5.56 capital improvement fee)
  • Resident: $542.56 (per credit hour)
  • Non-resident: $1,079.56 (per credit hour)
• Winter session courses will be billed separately at the above tuition rates per credit hour and will not be counted when considering the spring course load.
• For financial aid purposes, winter session and spring semester hours will be combined when considering total hours to qualify for financial aid. A minimum of six hours for undergraduate students and five hours for graduate students must be maintained to qualify for financial aid. Any courses dropped during the winter session will impact the total number of hours taken between the winter session and spring 2024. 

More information can be found on the Office of the Controller and Treasurer’s website at https://www.controller.msstate.edu/accountservices/tuition/

Can I combine my winter session and spring semester credit hours to reach the required 12 hours needed to be considered full time for the spring semester?

Yes. Students can combine hours to get full-time status, but they cannot combine hours to meet the tuition cap. Full-time status is used for things like financial aid, scholarships, parent’s insurance, use of the Student Health Center, Sanderson Center, and athletic events - just to name a few.

Can I combine my winter session and spring semester credit hours to reach the required 12 hours needed for MSU scholarships?

The Scholarship Office will use the combined enrolled hours for the winter session and the spring semester to determine a student’s eligibility for MSU scholarships. As long as a student’s combined enrolled credit hours are 12 or more for the winter and/or spring terms, we will disburse any MSU scholarships. Please keep in mind that if a student officially withdraws from any classes during the winter session, those credit hours will NOT be factored into their minimum 12 hours needed to receive an MSU scholarship.

What kind of financial aid is available?

For purposes of financial aid eligibility, winter session is combined with the spring semester. Therefore, the total number of credit hours taken between winter session and the spring semester will be used to determine the amount of a student’s financial aid.
 
Additional things to consider related to financial aid:

• Enrollment for the winter session and the spring term will be combined to determine a student’s Pell Grant amount. 
• If a student is enrolled in only the winter session, those hours will be used to determine their Pell Grant award. The final awarded amount will exclude any dropped classes or classes where the student received an “F” grade and stopped attending before the winter session ended. 
• Student financial aid will be disbursed for winter session and spring term on January 8, 2024, and the Pell Grant amount will initially be calculated based on the hours a student is registered in for the combined winter session and spring term on this date. 
• Students who drop a winter session class will not be paid Pell Grant for this class.
• Students who receive an “F” grade for a winter session class they completed (earned the “F” by attending the class until the end of the winter session) can be paid Pell Grant for this course. Students who receive an “F” grade for a winter session and for this never attended or stopped attending the class cannot be paid a Pell Grant course and may owe a balance back to the University if he or she is not registered in at least 12 credit hours (excluding the course with the F grade and no attendance reported) on the Pell Census Date (January 23, 2024).
• Enrollment will be checked again for the combined winter session and spring term and for students enrolled in only the winter session on the Pell Census Date, which is January 23, 2024. The final Pell Grant award will be based on the combined enrolled credit hours, but we will exclude any withdrawn hours for the winter session or any “F” grades for the winter session where the student stopped attending. 

Will the lectures be synchronous?

All classes are shown on the master schedule as TBA if they are taught via an asynchronous (go at your own pace) delivery format. Where the course opts for a synchronous delivery format, the schedule shows the day(s) and time(s) of each class session. If a course is listed as synchronous, students should be prepared to meet on the days and times indicated.

What kind of internet resources are available for those who do not have internet access at home?

If you are unable to find reliable internet, contact the Dean of Students Office at dos@msstate.edu. Funding may be available to assist you in purchasing internet access.

Will on-campus housing be available?

Yes, if you are living on campus fall 2023 and spring 2024. For on-campus housing during the winter session, students must submit a separate housing application and fees. Winter housing is available to current fall residents who are taking winter session classes and wish to remain on campus during that time. Winter housing applications are available in November. Students will be asked to identify the reason they need housing accommodations such as not having a permanent residence, taking winter session courses, or inability to return to a permanent residence as an international student, etc. Students can visit housing.msstate.edu to complete the housing application for Winter 2023 in the housing portal.

How can I register for Winter Express?

To register for MSU’s winter courses, current students may do so by clicking here: Register