Help Searching Michigan State University
Michigan State University’s main Web site, www.msu.edu, offers the following search services:
- Search MSU: Search MSU web space.
- People Search: Search for faculty, staff, students, and others affiliated with the university.
- Department Directory A-Z: Search for primary departmental contact info.
- Browse A-Z: See an alphabetical listing of MSU websites, both official as well as related sites of interest.
- Interactive Campus Map: Search for a location at MSU.
- IT Support: Support for technology is provided by the MSU IT Service Desk online, by phone, chat, and email.
About Search MSU
- If you search for something that does not have a matching entry in MSU Keywords, your search will be given to Google's index of msu.edu. Google Custom Search is based on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) best practices.
- If you would like to request keywords added for your MSU site, you may use our Keywords Request Form.
- Additional info about MSU Keywords can be found in our ITS Knowledge Base Article.
- Info about the MSU Search Tool: ITS Knowledge Base Article.
Please Note:
- MSU has no control over Google’s index of msu.edu. Google is a private company that offers a free university search service.
- Google states that their index of msu.edu typically will be updated every 30 days or so. Thus new or changed pages within msu.edu may not be reflected in Google for up to 30 days. Web Admins can expedite the crawl with Google's Search Console and generating a sitemap.
- MSU-related content that is not hosted within msu.edu, such as emeraldashborer.info, may not be found using Google’s index of msu.edu.
About People Search
Find People searches a database that has information about faculty, staff, retirees, and students. The database also contains contact information for people affiliated with the university, such as Guest Scholars. Note that some individuals’ listings are restricted and therefore you will not be able to find them using this search function. Source information provided to People Search is updated each business day. It may take a few days for updates to take effect. To expedite an update, please contact the MSU IT Service Desk via online form or by calling (517) 432-6200.
How To Modify Your Info in People Search:
Students:
- Students may wish to restrict all or part of the directory information refer to Student Rights Under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
Faculty/Staff/Retiree:
- Personal information, including distinguishing between legal and professional name, can be changed at the EBS Portal.
- Can employees change their own business address or phone number information? No, a Unit Administrator must make the change. Employees can change their own personal (home) addresses and phone number through EBS but can only view their business address information.
About A-Z Index
The MSU A-Z directory lets you browse an alphabetical list of Web sites. The list mainly includes official MSU Web sites, aliases, and links to other sites of general interest to the MSU community.
The MSU A-Z index is based on the same database that supports MSU Keywords, an index of official and popular sites at MSU. Therefore a search from the MSU home page will also find sites that are listed in the A-Z.
For Corrections to departmental contact info, please use the Keywords Request Form.
Other Resources
If you still can’t find what you’re looking for at Michigan State University, please contact the relevant MSU department. Links to departments related to the most commonly-asked questions appear at: https://msu.edu/contactus.