Switch to remote teaching

Updated 23 october

In coordination with the cantonal and federal health authorities, we have added three major measures to our protection plan: we will switch to remote teaching for the rest of the 2020–2021 fall semester; the priority will be for all UNIGE staff members to work from home; and there will be no in-person public events in University buildings. The aim of all these measures is to limit contacts between individuals and considerably reduce the number of people in University buildings.

Remote teaching

Starting on Monday, 2 November, classes will move online until the end of the 2020–2021 fall semester, both for standard and continuing education. Classes requiring access to specific UNIGE equipment, rooms or other resources will be exempted from this rule and will be allowed to be held in-person, with authorization granted on a case-by-case basis and provided health and safety rules are followed. This is the case, for example, for lab work, workshops, practicals, clinical work or exams that cannot be carried out remotely. The limited number of classes concerned will be identified by the relevant dean's office or management team, who will provide the students in question with a list of such classes by Monday, 2 November.

The January/February 2021 exam session will be held remotely for the most part. The  assessment conditions will be determined by Monday, 30 November. Any internships being conducted in a third-party organization will be subject to that organization's protection plan.

Working from home

Working from home, which is strongly encouraged by the FOPH, is the preferred option for all staff members, as we already announced in our email on 18 October. Given that the public-health crisis is currently peaking, this is not merely an organizational measure that applies only to UNIGE but rather a way of supporting the federal government's public-health policy. The UNIGE-specific limits for working from home were removed on 19 October in order to extend this measure as much as possible. This change must be implemented in coordination with supervisors, who are in charge of organizing their teams to ensure that operations can continue and all services can be provided.

research

Research can continue to be carried out in strict compliance with UNIGE's protection plan. Wherever possible, it should be conducted remotely. Particular attention should be paid to ensuring that this does not harm the careers of young researchers.

The University’s essential research and educational facilities will still be available to staff members and students. The UNIGE library will thus remain open. Where necessary, the library will provide information about any changes to its opening times on its website.

events

In addition, starting on Monday, 26 October, all public events due to be held within University buildings will be held online instead. All in-person graduation ceremonies have been cancelled, postponed or moved online. The University's day-to-day activities and internal events not involving people from outside the University community are subject to UNIGE's protection plan. The conditions for holding these events can be viewed on the coronavirus website’s events page. Where needed, such events can be held in person, although a hybrid or remote format is strongly recommended.

Sports activities and spontaneous gatherings

Following the cantonal government’s decision to ban all contact, combat and team sports, the University’s sports and culture team will provide information about the specific rules for each activity on their website.

The cantonal government has also banned impromptu gatherings of more than five people, including at the entrances to University buildings, an area of concern explicitly mentioned by the cantonal authorities.

cafeterias

 The cafeterias are still subject to the restaurant sector's protection plan, which means that you have to wear a mask when you're moving around, your details will have to be taken for contact-tracing purposes and there will be a limit of five people per table.

The decision on whether to extend some or all of these measures into the spring 2021 semester will be made in December, in coordination with the authorities and based on how the public-health situation evolves.