Umeå University follows the Public Health Agency of Sweden’s guidelines and have taken a number of precautionary measures to help limit the spread of COVID-19 on our campuses.
Premises and events
The university premises including the University Library remain open with limited opening hours, this is to enable necessary compulsory course components to be carried out and course literature to be accessible, for instance. However, you should avoid coming to the university unless necessary, and absolutely refrain if you have the slightest symptoms of disease.
No events may be held in university premises.
Serving and consuming alcohol in university premises is prohibited.
Student unions are urged to not organise events in other locations either, particularly those including alcohol.
Adaptations of university premises
All public spaces, lecture rooms, group study rooms and study spaces must be adapted for physical distancing to the extent possible. The university does this by
limiting the number of seats in auditoriums and lecture halls
signposting reminders to keep the distance in public spaces
increasing cleaning of auditoriums and toilets, for instance
distributing hand sanitiser and signposting to departments and offices
For security reasons, some buildings are kept locked. This currently concerns the University Administration Building and the University Administration Building. Main entrances are open during daytime.
Education
Teaching should be carried out online or through other forms of instruction that do not involve physical presence or visits to university premises. This means that your education may be different to what you had imagined.
If the education can be carried out in a safe way, beginner students on study programmes will have some of your education on campus to get the best possible start to your studies. But it is also likely that you will have some of your activities online.
Examination should take place online or through other adapted formats that do not involve person-to-person meetings or visits to university premises, under the condition that legal certainty can be maintained and that reasonable demands on quality can be satisfied. This means your examinations can be performed differently to what you had expected.
Although, some knowledge and understanding cannot be assessed through take-home examinations since the answers can easily be found online or by collaborating.
And video surveillance of home exams is advised against for integrity and legal reasons by the university's educational experts and the student unions.
For these reasons, the university still needs to conduct some well-chosen assessments as hall examinations.
Please read below what measures have been taken and what you need to know and do before and during your hall exam.
New routines for written hall examinations
To reduce the spread of COVID-19 during written exams in examination halls, Umeå University has introduced temporary routines.
Do not participate if you have symptoms
A student who experiences symptoms of disease may not participate in a hall examination. The student must notify the teacher of his or her absence. A student who cannot take part due to illness, or chooses to not participate due to worry, has the right to participate at the next possible time.
Reduce crowding
It is crucial that all students leave the building as soon as they have handed in their examination and in that way reduce the risk of crowding.
Students are urged to keep distance to others and avoid speaking to the invigilators and each other to the extent possible prior to, during and after their examination.
Safety precautions in exam halls
The number of students in each hall has been heavily reduced. The maximum number of students has been limited to 20 per hall. Some halls seat even fewer.
All students are placed with a minimum distance of 2 metres to others in all directions.
Face masks will be offered to all students and staff during exams.
Tables and bathrooms are cleaned between each exam session.
A student who feels worried about taking part in a written hall examination can choose not to take part and will then be given the chance to sit the exam at the next opportunity.
The ventilation is set to full effect at Östra Paviljongen, which also means that the hall can feel cold. This also applies to campus halls.
To enable for those who really need to sit hall exams, more premises on campus have been adapted to abide by the recommended distances, maximum numbers and safety procedures.
Exams can be scheduled to Sundays or to evenings starting at 18:00.
To reduce unnecessary gatherings at Östra Paviljongen, the starting times of examinations are different for different halls.
The measures have been taken in dialogue with the Department of Communicable Disease Control and Prevention at Region Västerbotten.
Wearing a face mask
Umeå University follows the recommended distance between students in written hall exams and has heavily limited the number of students in each hall to reduce the risk of spreading infection. Despite this, the Department of Communicable Disease Control and Prevention at Region Västerbotten still recommends that students and staff wear face masks at written hall exams as an extra precaution. Students are offered single use face masks in connection with the exam.
In order to sit the exam, all students must sign up for the exam and be listed on the registration list that the department submits to the Examination Services. Students who have not signed up on time will not be allowed to take the exam.
Reduced contact with teachers during exams
To avoid several people using the same phone and taking unnecessary contact with the invigilator, students will not be able to phone their teacher if there are obscurities with the exam. Instead, students are asked to make a note of this in their exam. Teachers are not allowed to visit the exam hall during the ongoing exam either. If a situation should arise regarding questions of aids or missing questions in the exam, the invigilator may call the teacher.
More entrances at Östra Paviljongen
Each hall at Östra Paviljongen now has an assigned entrance to reduce the risk of crowding when entering and leaving the building. All students must therefore find out in what hall their exam will be held and make sure they know what entrance to use. Assigned entrances can be found on the map.
To reduce the risk of causing queues into the examination halls, the invigilator will not check students’ identification and registration at the door. Instead, the invigilator will do so once the exam has started. Lists of registered students will be posted outside each hall.
Handing in an exam
When handing in an exam, students will approach the invigilator’s table, show their identification and hand in the exam.
A new routine is the Plexiglas sheet distancing the invigilator from the students. These are available in most halls, also external ones. At Östra Paviljongen there are also markings on the floor indicating that only one student may queue at any given time and at a safe distance from each other.
