As a family member of a Michigan student, you may want to stay informed about what's happening on campus. For general campus news, you may want to follow or like the university's social media channels. The student-run campus newspaper, The Michigan Daily, offers another perspective on campus life.

Parent & Family Newsletters

The university offers several digital spaces designed specifically to keep our students’ family members, parents, guardians and supporters informed.

  • Beyond the Parents & Families website, parents can receive information: Through email newsletters from selected U-M departments
  • By joining the MFamily Portal, a digital community where you’ll find campus news and information.
  • By subscribing to the Family Matters monthly e-newsletter from Student Life.

Once at this page, your student can authorize you to receive the e-mail newsletters. Once your student signs you up for e-mail newsletters, you will receive them automatically. Students are responsible for making sure their parents’ email addresses are accurate, so if you change your e-mail address, remind your student to update the information in Wolverine Access so you don’t miss a newsletter. 

Parent & Family Access to Student Account & Financial Aid Information

Students can use the "Parent/Family Authorization" section of Wolverine Access to give their parents selected access to their individual student account and financial aid information (but not grades).

To find the "Parent/Family Authorization" section in the online Wolverine Access system, your student must navigate to wolverineaccess.umich.edu and click on the following: 

  • Students
  • Student Business
  • Campus Personal Information
  • UM Parent/Family Authorization

Students can check the boxes for "student account" and "financial aid" to provide parents and family members access to this information. 

Once your student authorizes you to have access to their account and financial aid information, you must take one additional step in order to access the student-specific information. You must create a “Friend Account,” where you will set up a login and password. For details about how parents can create a Friend Account, visit the IT Central Services web page.

Frequently Asked Questions about Wolverine Access for Parents & Family

I logged in to Wolverine Access, but when I chose Student Business I get a message telling me that the system is unavailable. What should I do?

You need to click on “My Student’s Information” under the Parent & Family section of the page.

I am getting an unable to login message due to a Password or Account Name (ID) problem. Is there a problem with the login?

First, verify that the email login ID you entered on the sign-on page is the same email address you provided when you originally set up your U-M Friend Account. Then, verify that the password you are entering is correct. If you can’t remember your password, try to reset it on the Reset page.

I am getting the ‘system not available’ message when I try to log in to My Student’s Information on Wolverine Access. What might be the problem?

There are several possible problems:

  • Contact your student to verify that you are authorized to view your student’s data within the Student Business transactions in Wolverine Access.
  • Contact your student to verify the Friend email address you are using as your login ID matches the authorized email entered by your student to grant access.
  • There are regular hours of operation for Wolverine Access. If you attempt to access your student’s data outside of these hours, you will be unable to do so. For more information, see the Hours of Operation tab on the main Wolverine Access page.

I already use a UMICH ([email protected]) email account, and I would like to use that address to receive my student’s account statement notifications. Do I need to set up a Friend account?

No, you do not need a Friend Account if you can already log into U-M systems with a uniqname and password combination. Your uniqname and Kerberos password allows you access to My Student’s Information. You should contact your student to verify he/she authorized your UMICH email address for the Student Business transactions in Wolverine Access. Please note: If you set up a Friend account with an email address that matches your UMICH email account, you are prevented from completing the Friend account set-up.

I have access to the Parent/Family Business page in Wolverine Access, and I can select the ‘View Bills’ link to view my student’s bill(s). However, when I click on the link to the bill (select a specific month), I cannot view the statement. How can I view it?

The Adobe Acrobat reader application is required to view the bill. If you are having problems with Adobe Acrobat, you can download the latest version or find more information on the company’s website. You can access that site by clicking on the Adobe Acrobat Reader link on the View Student Account Bills page.

I have access to the Parent/Family Business page in Wolverine Access, and I can select either the ‘View Bills’ link or the ‘View Financial Aid Award Notices’ link. However, after the page opens, instead of seeing data or links, I get either “No Billing Information Found” or “No Award Notices found” messages. Why can’t I see a bill or an award notice?

The information may not yet exist in the system. If your student has not had any account statements or award notices created (especially new students), you will receive the message that the information cannot be found.

My student told me that he authorized me to receive informational emails from U-M, but I haven't received any emails. What is the problem?

Emails may not reach you for a number of reasons:

  • Some email accounts include a bulk mail folder or a junk mail folder. Your system may perceive the emails as unsolicited mail and direct it to these folders.
  • Some email does not reach its intended destination. This may be due to a failure on the Internet or a large volume of email traffic that exceed your email provider’s bandwidth. The message may be viewed as unwanted e-mail (spam) and your system mail filter it out.
  • Your email provider may limit the amount of space available for email storage. If you have exceeded the limit, emails will not be delivered.
  • Check with your email provider to see if any of the above may be the reason why you haven’t received emails.

My student signed me up to view his student bill, account information, and financial aid, but I never received any information. What should I do?

There are several steps you must follow:

  • You need to set up a new U-M Friend Account so that you can log on to Wolverine Access to see the data. Go to the Friend Account page and enter your full email address to begin the account creation process.
  • Contact your student to verify that he/she added the Friend email address you are using as your login ID to authorize you access.
  • Check to see that the email settings on your computer did not identify the incoming message as spam and automatically moved it in the trash bin or deleted items. If your settings need to be updated, add ‘[email protected]’ to your contacts list so that future messages will be received.

I have access to the Parent/Family Business page in Wolverine Access, and I can select the ‘View Bills’ link to view my student’s bill(s). However, when I click on the link to the bill (select a specific month), I get a ‘File Damaged’ error. What does this mean?

The security settings on your computer may not allow you to view the statement. Verify the following settings related to your internet browser:

  • Using the menu at the top of your browser window, navigate to Tools>Internet Options.
  • Choose the security tab.
  • Determine where you can change your security levels; this may be a button that reads ‘Custom Level.’ Find the security setting for the topic labeled ‘Display Mixed Content.’ This should be set to ‘Prompt’ or ‘Enable.’ (’Prompt’ means that before the file opens, a pop-up message displays on your screen, requiring you to click ‘OK’ before it will proceed.)

I didn’t receive an email telling me that my student’s account statement (eBill) was available for viewing? How can I get the email?

Contact your student to verify the Friend email address you are using as your login ID is still authorized in the Wolverine Access to view the Student Business transactions. Then, check to see that the email settings on your computer did not identify the incoming message as spam and automatically moved it in the trash bin or [email protected] deleted items. If your settings need to be updated, add to your contacts list so that future messages will be received.

I have two students currently attending U-M. Do I need to set up two separate Friend accounts to log in and view data for each student?

No, you only need to create one Friend account. The same login ID and password allows you to see data for each student, as long as they have both authorized your email address. After selecting a transaction within Parent/Family Business in Wolverine Access, you should see two names appear, which are the names of both your students. When you click on either name, the data for the student you selected displays. Please Note: A Friend Account is not necessary if you can already log into U-M systems with a uniqname and password combination. You only need one uniqname and Kerberos password to access My Student’s Information for both students. But each student must have previously authorized you by adding your UMID email account.

Student Account Statements (student bills) are generated monthly, but I didn’t sign up in time for a Friend account or gain access until after the bill was generated. Can I still view the statements? When will I start receiving notifications that a new statement is available?

You can gain access to student statements as soon as:

  • Your student has authorized your email address in Wolverine Access
  • You have already successfully created a Friend account or you have an existing UMICH login ID

After you complete these steps, you will be able to log in and view up to 12 months of previous statements. Notifications of new statements are sent via email on a monthly basis, when the new statements are generated. New statements are generally processed around the 8th calendar day of the month. If you are an authorized user at that time, you will receive that month’s notification.