New student requirements

New Student Health Requirements

The state Department of Public Health requires that students attending college in Massachusetts have specific vaccinations, or proof of immunity. Mount Holyoke College additionally requires undergraduate students complete a health history form and complete a screening questionnaire for tuberculosis risk. Those who are identified as having elevated risk will need to submit further TB screening.

All students who have been admitted to MHC are expected to meet these requirements and submit documentation prior to arriving at MHC. For those who are unable to complete the vaccine requirements prior to arrival, Health Services is able to complete needed vaccinations once on campus.

Varsity athletes and graduate students may have additional or different health clearance requirements.

Medical “clearance” requires these steps:

Step 1 - Complete Online Forms

Please login to My Health Connection and complete the following online forms:

• Complete the TB Risk Questionnaire
  • If the screening questionnaire identifies elevated risk, further tuberculosis testing is required. This test must be done within 6 months of semester’s start.
  • TB screening tests accepted include either:
    • A PPD skin test completed in the US or Canada, signed by the health care clinician/office who performed the test
    • TB blood test including Quantiferon Gold or T-Spot; a copy of the laboratory report is required.
    • International students from countries where TB is endemic can get the blood test done prior to arrival if a copy of the lab report is provided; otherwise they will be expected to attend the TB testing clinic prior to the start of classes.
• Complete the Health History
• Electronically sign the Billing Practices form and the Confidentiality Statement
• Enter Immunization Dates
  • Enter your immunization dates into the immunization section in the portal in MM/DD/YYYY format
  • The following Immunizations are required:
    • Tdap/DTaP – Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (at least one dose after the age of 10, and within the last 10 years)
      • If greater than 10 years since last Tdap/DTaP a booster is required: either Td or Tdap (recommended)
    • MMR – Measles*, Mumps* and Rubella* (2 vaccines)
    • Hep B* – Hepatitis B (series of 3 Engerix or Recombivax) or Heplisav (series of 2)
    • Meningitis ACWY (on or after 16th birthday and within 5 years of matriculation, or a signed waiver)
    • Varicella* – Chicken pox (2 vaccines or clinician signed proof of having had chicken pox)
  • Students who are unable to obtain documentation of required immunizations can instead get “titers” drawn to demonstrate immunity. If this has been done, students should enter the dates of the lab tests and denote if the results were positive (proving immunity) or negative (non-immune). Only the vaccines with an asterisk (*) are options for meeting the requirement with a positive titer.

Step 2 - Immunization Verification 

After entering the dates of immunizations or dates of blood tests documenting immunity, students must submit documentation of their vaccine dates and/or lab tests. Mount Holyoke accepts any of the following immunization documentation:

• MHC Immunization Form may be completed and signed by the student’s healthcare provider, who is not a family member
• Immunization Record/Booklet may be submitted from a medical record or patient portal
  • If students have blood tests documenting immunity in place of a vaccine records, they must submit copies of the blood tests with reference range included
• Requests for exemptions to any of the immunization requirements must be submitted one the forms below:
  • Medical Exemption
  • Religious Exemption

Step 3 - For Students under the age of 18

• Parent or guardian must print and sign the Authorization to Treat Minor and submit it to Health Services

Submit all documentation through the My Health Connection portal; use your MHC credentials to log in and then use the “medical records” feature to upload documents or photos of the required forms.

As we process the incoming forms, the submitted clearance actions will be viewable to the student via the portal. Please do not email or call to verify receipt of the documentation. CHS does periodic communication over the summer months to share what-- if any-- documents are missing.

If you have questions or problems regarding the medical clearance process, please email health-admin@mtholyoke.edu (NOT medical records), or phone 413-538-2089 and leave a voice message, clearly sharing student name, caller name and call back phone number.

Health Requirements for Graduate Students

Because graduate students are eligible for care through Health Services at MHC, they are strongly encouraged to complete the health history on MyHealthConnection patient portal. This information is kept confidential as part of your medical record.

Graduate students who are less than 30 years of age at time of matriculation DO have vaccine requirements, unless they are fully remote. Any on campus activities or academic work requires compliance with required immunizations.

The My Health Connection portal must be used to complete the required health forms. Your user name and password for the portal is the same to access my.mtholyoke.

Immunization Records:

• Enter the dates of required vaccinations on the patient portal, then submit a copy of the completed vaccination form, or a copy of your vaccine records through the portal or via email as detailed below.
• We encourage all students to be/remain up to date on all vaccines recommendations even those that are not required: COVID-19, HPV, Tdap (tetanus & pertussis specifically).

Forms can be sent via:

• Upload: Myhealthconnection portal (preferred),
• Email: medical-records@mtholyoke.edu or
• Fax: (413) 538-2352

New student athletes

First year, transfer, & current students who have never participated in a varsity sport at MHC have additional health clearance requirements in accordance with NCAA. This applies only to new, varsity athletes.

All incoming student requirements apply to new varsity athletes also. Please complete these first, as you are not permitted to participate in pre-season, practice, or competition until the MHC health clearance requirements are met.

Additional requirements for varsity sport participation include:

• Sports Clearance Medical History and Physical Exam completed within 6 months of starting sport participation
  • On or after May 1 for Track & Field, Squash, Basketball, Swimming/Diving
  • On or after March 15 for all other teams
• Sickle Cell Trait Testing
• Medication Exemption Form, if applicable
  • NCAA has a list of banned substances
  • Completed ONLY if you are prescribed medication that requires paperwork per the NCAA (i.e ADHD medication, asthma medication, etc.)
• Baseline Concussion Neurocognitive Testing (MHC uses Concussion Vital Signs)
• Front Rush (athletics compliance platform)

Sports clearance medical history, physical exam and Sickle Cell testing can be uploaded directly to your medical chart, using the My Health Connection portal. Only Athletic Trainers and Health Services medical staff have access to your medical chart.

Concussion Vital Signs and Front Rush requirements can be completed at the respective online sites (see Detailed Instructions from Athletics for Varsity Clearance).

Contact Catie Gilman, MEd, ATC if questions arise regarding varsity athlete health clearance requirements: cleblanc@mtholyoke.edu .