Start of the 2020 academic year
Updated 21 August
The current public-health situation, and the resulting uncertainty, will have an impact on the start of the new academic year. Safeguarding the health of all members of our community will still be our main concern, and we are doing everything we can to ensure that we can maintain our high teaching standards while strictly complying with health and safety requirements. The University’s protection plan, which has been submitted to the cantonal public-health authorities for approval, has been amended so that you will be able to work and study as needed.
For the moment, the most effective weapon we have against the COVID-19 pandemic is our strict compliance with the health and safety rules.
FACE MASKS
In keeping with the Geneva cantonal government’s 6 August order (French only) which comes into force on 24 August, you must wear a face mask inside all university buildings when you cannot keep a distance of at least 1.5 meters from other people. Specifically, your mask must be on when you enter a building, and it must remain on at all times, including in elevators, bathrooms and classrooms and whenever you move around. You can remove your mask – once you are at your desk, for example – only if you can keep a distance of 1.5 meters from other people. You must wear it whenever you are moving around.
The FOPH rules on the correct use of face masks must be followed by staff members, students and anyone else on University premises. The Rectorate has also drawn up a directive setting out the rules concerning face masks.
Students must provide their own face masks. However, to ensure the academic year gets off to a good start, two surgical face masks per day will be made available to each student for free for the first two weeks of the fall semester. You will have to show your student card at one of the distribution points at the entrance to the main university buildings. Starting on 28 September 2020, students will be able to buy packs of 50 face masks for CHF 10 at one of the UNIGE points of sale. If you are facing extreme financial hardship, you can request support from the Social and financial service which will provide you with face masks for free.
Each student can also request two reusable cloth masks.
Two surgical masks per working day are provided free of charge to employees who request them. The costs for the purchase of additional masks are borne by the employees. In addition, two industrial fabric masks are provided free of charge to each member of staff who requests them. Staff members can submit a request to receive two free surgical face masks per work day. You will have to pay for any additional face masks you may require. Each staff member can also request two reusable cloth masks.
> Distribution times and instructions
To ensure that you can work comfortably in the library while maintaining social distancing, work places have been spread out and the library’s capacity has been reduced. If you are in the library, you are therefore authorized to remove your face mask once you are seated, but you must put it on again when you stand up to leave.
KEEPING HANDS CLEAN
Hand sanitizer dispensers are available at the entrance to each university building and in other common areas. Washing one's hands with soap and water is just as effective as using hand sanitizer. It is essential that everyone keeps their hands clean as part of our fight against the pandemic.
Each member of the UNIGE community is entitled to receive a small bottle of hand sanitizer, which you will be able to refill at one of the refill points. Disinfectant products (such as wipes, liquids and sprays) are also available for staff members.
TEACHING
In-person teaching is the priority during the autumn semester, ensuring that students and teachers can interact directly in strict compliance with the health and safety rules. Depending on how the public-health situation evolves, we may also switch to hybrid teaching during the 2020–2021 academic year.
To ensure compliance with the quarantine and self-isolation measures, all classes must be run in a way that does not require students to be physically present at the University, and teachers may wish to use the tools offered on the remote teaching website for this purpose. Classes given in University-equipped rooms are recorded and can be watched in real time or later on. Teachers who have come up with a hybrid teaching approach (in-person and remote) for the fall 2020 semester are encouraged to maintain it. At the start of each recorded class, teachers are kindly asked to include a PowerPoint slide, available here, informing students that the class is being recorded and will be available on a UNIGE platform.
Each faculty and center sets its own rules about how hybrid teaching will take place and approves the teaching approaches on the basis of pedagogical criteria.
UNIGE has a lot of experience in distance teaching. And during the past semester, when all university buildings were closed because of the pandemic, we saw that simply knowing how to use one of the platforms was not enough. It’s important to consider the impact that IT tools have on teaching when looking at what tools to use and the possibilities they offer. A website with information on remote and hybrid teaching has therefore been created for teachers. It provides practical advice on how to integrate e-learning into your classes, ways to improve interaction between teachers and students, tutorials, individual training and support, reference documents and good practices from other universities. A similar service for students is also now available on the student life webpage.
A student life webpage has also been created. It covers three main topics: your studies, with tips on remote learning, accessing the platforms, using the resources available, and available training; practical matters, which covers administrative and financial aspects, such as accommodations and health care; and campus life, which provides information about the UNIGE community, including associations, sports, culture and career opportunities. A new class-scheduling interface has also been launched. A similar service for teachers is available on the distance and hybrid teaching webpage.
To help new students get settled in and encourage peer-to-peer learning, we have also set up a Campus Coach program for the new academic year. This connects students looking to share their experience – the coaches – with those looking for help settling into social and academic life on campus.
REMOTE WORKING
The temporary provisions governing remote working, which were put in place at the start of the public-health crisis, will remain in effect until 31 August, as announced. Starting on 1 September, administrative and technical staff may request to continue working remotely provided they have all the equipment they need at home and remote working is compatible with the needs of their unit. Supervisors must approve all requests to work from home. The rules set out in the directive on remote working apply to all administrative and technical staff, with the exception of the need to sign a remote working agreement, which has been put on hold until further notice. This directive stipulates that staff members cannot work from home for more than 40% of their contractual work time (e.g., two days a week of remote working for someone working full time) and that only staff members who are working at 50% or more can work from home. Teaching and research staff can also continue to work from home, in keeping with the terms agreed upon with their supervisors.
STUDENT SUPPORT
The pandemic has wiped out a lot of student jobs and created new needs, particularly in terms of IT equipment and internet connections, that have to be met for students to be able to take classes remotely. The economic consequences of this public-health crisis will unfortunately be long-lasting. To help students, UNIGE and HES-SO Geneva have increased the financial aid available for the 2020–2021 academic year as part of a public-private partnership.
Students in difficulty will be able to apply for a monthly grant of CHF 600 or more, depending on their income. Requests must be submitted twice a year, at the start of each semester, using a streamlined procedure that will reduce the average processing time from two months to one month. For students experiencing short-term financial difficulties, one-off aid of between CHF 600 and CHF 1,000 can also be provided. You can find more information on the UNIGE website.
TRAVEL
Work-related travel to any of the countries or areas with a high risk of infection, as set out in the COVID-19 Ordinance, is prohibited. Dean’s offices, management teams and the Rectorat may grant an exception if there are urgent reasons why you have to travel to one of these countries. We encourage staff members to only travel to other destinations outside Switzerland if necessary, in keeping with FOPH recommendations.
Since 6 July 2020, anyone entering Switzerland from one of the countries or areas with a high risk of infection must spend ten days in quarantine and immediately inform the relevant cantonal authorities if they show symptoms. We therefore strongly discourage all members of the UNIGE community from traveling abroad for personal reasons unless absolutely necessary.
The rules governing travel and mobility are available on the UNIGE website.
QUARANTINE
Self-isolation and quarantine are necessary measures in the fight to limit the spread of coronavirus. Detailed information, including quarantine advice, is available on the FOPH website.
The cantonal doctor will contact anyone who has to go into quarantine – the public-health authorities are responsible for monitoring the situation and deciding what measures need to be taken.
In case of contact with someone who has tested positive, people must continue to scrupulously follow the health and safety rules and monitor your health. The cantonal doctor will contact them if they have to go into quarantine. In the meantime, they can continue to work and study as normal. Staff members who have to go into quarantine should read the instructions on the coronavirus site, under “quarantine,” where all the different scenarios are described.
EVENTS
Given the constraints caused by the public-health situation, the Rectorate has set the following order of priority for events:
- Teaching (e.g., classes and seminars)
- Other UNIGE academic events (e.g., symposiums, thesis defenses and other similar gatherings)
- Public events involving the local community (e.g., large conferences, debates and exhibitions) or organized by third parties.
All public events held at UNIGE are under the responsibility of the organizers. A specific protection plan must be approved for each event. UNIGE will provide a template for events organized by the University or by the academic community as of 1 september. For further information: