Lectures continue, exams reviewed, face masks in the hallways

Previously scheduled lectures, work groups and PhD ceremonies will continue to be held in the UU buildings in the coming weeks. The decision was made to contribute to the social connection between students and their study process, the UU board writes.

The government’s decision still allows for in-person education. After all, educational institutions are exempt from the maximum group size of thirty people. The UU board does state that students and teachers who do not wish to come to the university because of their health or that of family members or housemates, will not be required to do so.

Large-scale exams
Exams can continue as normal, but given the quickly rising number of corona infections, the university will intervene in the large-scale exams. In the case of exams for more than a hundred students at once, programmes will have to either offer the exam online, divide the group into smaller groups, or postpone the exam.

As this requires quite a lot of organisational acrobatics, this regulation will not go into effect until Monday, October 26 – although of course programmes who wish to adjust their exams before that day are free to do so.

Students should be informed about what awaits them at least two days before the exam. In the coming weeks, many exams are scheduled to take place in the Jaarbeurs, sports centre Olympos, and in the Educatorium.

Coco's
The university says it’s taking measures to be able to safely welcome students to the UU buildings. For exams, for instance, corona coordinators (cocos) are employed. Students and employees are expressly requested to adhere to all the safety measures and to follow the cocos’ advice. As an article published by DUB this week proves, this doesn’t always happen.

The study spots in the University Libraries and other places in the UU buildings will also remain available. There are clear rules for the use of study spots as well. “If students don’t follow the rules, we won’t hesitate to intervene,” the UU board warns.

Facemasks
The university is also tightening up the ‘urgent advice’ of wearing facemasks. In a previous mail, the board said that wearing one in ‘crowded’ places should be ‘the principle’. That led to a lot of discussion about how to interpret those words.

The new regulation states that all students and employees who ‘move around’ inside the UU buildings are expected to wear a facemask. In the press conference on Tuesday, the government stated that it’s possible that wearing facemasks will be made obligatory in the near future.

Meetings not directly related to education and research will not be able to take place in person. That includes symposia, keynotes, and for instance graduation ceremonies. The university’s dining establishments in the Administration building, in Parnassos, and in Olympos will also close for four weeks. The canteens will remain open.

Students and employees are once again requested to work and study from home as much as possible. Those who do come to the university can do the so-called UU-corona-check. And lastly, the UU strongly urges its students and employees to download the new national corona app.

“This way, all of us are doing what we can, ensuring a safe work and study environment, and preventing us, as academia, from having to take more severe measures such as closing buildings again,” the email ends.