Message to all students on preparing for classes to start again on March 23

This message was originally sent to students by Feridun Hamdullahpur, president and vice-chancellor

• Courses start again on Monday, March 23, 2020 but there will be no in-person activity 
• If you haven’t heard from you instructor by Monday, March 23, please reach out to them directly 
• We have extended the Drop with WD Period for Winter Term to March 30 
• You do not need to be on campus or to purchase any new technologies to complete the Winter Term 
• We will confirm plans for the Spring Term very soon  

Last week we suspended on-campus course activity so we could make plans to finish the Winter Term with no in-person classes or exams. Thank you for your patience as we make changes to help us limit the spread of COVID-19 in our community and in Canada. 

Your instructors will email you with details of how they plan to end the term 

Instructors have been developing end of term plans and will be communicating these to you by email or through LEARN. If you haven’t heard from them by Monday, March 23, please reach out directly. 

We have extended the Drop with WD Period for Winter Term to March 30, giving you more time to make choices once your instructors determine how your courses will work for the rest of the term. We have also shifted the Drop with WF Period to March 31 to April 7, inclusive. 

Staying committed to academic integrity is as important now as it is in normal circumstances. Please continue to show this integrity as we deliver courses in new ways. 

Some buildings will stay open and services have moved online 

Some campus buildings are open as we try to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 but only for students to use if they have no other place to go.  

If you have left campus you can get help when you need it online or over the phone.   

Health Services and Counselling Services are available and moving as many appointments and sessions to telephone-based appointments as possible, no matter where you are. Our Libraries are offering online support to serve students as their buildings are not open.  

We’re keeping a list of amended services available on the COVID-19 website.   

WUSA’s EmpowerMe student assistance program is also available if you need it. No issue is too big or too small, and interactions with the service are confidential. Call the 24/7 helpline at 1-844-741-6389 (toll-free) from anywhere in North America and ask your counsellor for support in your preferred language. 

You can make changes to your co-op work terms if you need to 

We’re supporting students in co-op programs, overseas and international students here in Waterloo in several ways: 

• we’ve moved hiring interviews to phone calls and changed some requirements for co-op credit 
• we’re helping students who are overseas get home 
• we’re supporting international students who can’t leave Waterloo right now  
• we’re asking students in residence to leave and claim a refund if they have somewhere else to go 

We want to make sure that you have a great experience studying at Waterloo, even if you can’t be here on our campus. Please let us know by emailing us at coronavirus@uwaterloo.ca if you have any needs or questions that we haven’t yet answered.  

A plan for the Spring Term will be available soon

We expect to share details on course delivery campus services and deadlines for Spring in the coming hours and days. Keep an eye on your inbox for more information. 

I know that COVID-19 has created an exceptional amount of uncertainty and stress during what is already a challenging academic environment. Please stay up-to-date on our COVID-19 website for all updates as news progresses.    

Know that we are here to help and support each of you along the way and answer any additional questions as quickly as possible.