Covid-19 Update 34 – Phase 2: The return of students to campus
- Wits University
Students who are scheduled to return as part of phase 2, will return in mid-July.
Dear Students
We hope that you are healthy and well.
At the end of May, we shared information about Wits’ phased approach for the return of students and staff to our campuses. The first cohort of students are already on campus. Students who are scheduled to return as part of phase 2, will return in mid-July. If you are required to return in this phase, your School coordinator or lecturer will communicate the exact date, time and schedule directly to you.
Cohorts that will be invited to return from mid-July are as follows:
Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management
The Faculty will reintegrate a very small percentage of the student body, as and when appropriate. PhD and MSc students who require access to data laboratories will return. A very small number of students in accountancy and law, and specifically final year CTA students and legal practice students in law, will attend a limited number of tutorials on campus. All other activities will continue online.
Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment
PhD and MSc students who require access to laboratories will return. Selected graduating classes and students who need access to laboratories and/or studios, will also return.
Faculty of Health Sciences
Pre-final year students with a high clinical load will return. Undergraduate students with clinical training needs and postgraduate students with laboratory-based research will return.
Faculty of Humanities
The Faculty will reintegrate a percentage of the student body. Schools within the Faculty will communicate directly with students who need to return to campus.
Faculty of Science
Some PhD and Research Masters students have already returned. Honours students who require access to laboratories and a very careful selection of 3rd year students will return.
Residences
The first cohort of students who found it difficult to study online returned to Wits’ campuses in June, where they continue with their online studies from their respective residences. As per regulations, no more than one third of Wits’ residences may be occupied at any given time. This means that only a limited number of students are allowed to live in residences. The Dean of Students is managing this process carefully and will communicate details of a possible return to those students who have applied, as soon as lockdown regulations allow for a further return of students in this category.
Managing Covid-19 risks
There is still much confusion in the public sphere surrounding Covid-19. The following article co-authored by several Wits experts, helps to contextualise the pandemic and provides some useful pointers on Covid-19 risks and how to manage them. Read more: Distance, Dose, Dispersion: Experts’ guide on Covid-19 risks in South Africa and how to manage them.
Conclusion
Your wellbeing and safety is paramount and it will take our collective effort, courage and determination to keep the coronavirus at bay. Please do not return to campus unless you have been given express permission to return, as we are carefully managing the numbers of students and staff on our campuses. Please contact your lecturers or School Administrators directly should you have any further queries.
Thank you
SENIOR EXECUTIVE TEAM
3 JULY 2020