{"id":351433,"date":"2021-10-07T14:35:48","date_gmt":"2021-10-07T11:35:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/campus-life-at-canadian-universities-during-the-second-pandemic-school-year\/"},"modified":"2021-10-07T14:35:48","modified_gmt":"2021-10-07T11:35:48","slug":"campus-life-at-canadian-universities-during-the-second-pandemic-school-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/campus-life-at-canadian-universities-during-the-second-pandemic-school-year\/","title":{"rendered":"#Campus life at Canadian universities during the second pandemic school year"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a41298c3d05e\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a41298c3d05e\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/campus-life-at-canadian-universities-during-the-second-pandemic-school-year\/#Classes\" >Classes<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/campus-life-at-canadian-universities-during-the-second-pandemic-school-year\/#Residence\" >Residence<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/campus-life-at-canadian-universities-during-the-second-pandemic-school-year\/#Events\" >Events<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/campus-life-at-canadian-universities-during-the-second-pandemic-school-year\/#Sports\" >Sports<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;<strong>#Campus life at Canadian universities during the second pandemic school year<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n                                                                        As provinces ease pandemic restrictions, most universities in Canada are planning for some sort of a return to campus this fall.\u00a0Forget protocol on packed lecture halls, universities now have to crack down on house parties and homecoming crowds.\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"#ednote\">*<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Each school must abide by public health guidelines set out by their government\u2019s ministry of post-secondary education to limit the spread of COVID-19, and some are going a step further by implementing vaccine mandates. So, for students who are looking forward to experiencing aspects of on-campus life, what\u2019s in store? How will schools balance student safety with a semblance of the classic college experience?<\/p>\n<p>We heard from seven Canadian universities about their plans for everything from vaccine mandates to air-filtration improvements to <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">social<\/a>ly distanced orientations during this once-again-unprecedented school year.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>READ: What h<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ens to sexual assault\u00a0report at Canadian universities? No one really knows.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Classes\"><\/span><b>Classes<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Schools will return to classrooms in different degrees this September. The biggest university in the country, the University of Toronto (U of T) is planning to offer in-person activity for about 55 per cent of its 16,000 courses this fall, according to a school spokesperson; the percentage will vary significantly across departments and based on the nature of the program. At Dalhousie University, a much smaller school of about 20,000 students, most courses will be in-person with a small number online, according to Janet Bryson, associate director, media relations and issue management.<\/p>\n<p>At U of T, students will have to upload proof of vaccination through the UCheck self-assessment portal, showing that they had their first dose by Sept. 13 and their second by Oct. 15. Those with an approved exemption or awaiting their final dose must participate in the school\u2019s rapid screening program via free at-home testing kits. U of T will also require masking indoors and has made \u201csignificant adjustments\u201d to their facilities, says the school spokesperson, including upgraded air filtration with a minimum of six air changes per hour in classrooms.<\/p>\n<p>At press time, other schools, such as McGill University, hadn\u2019t mandated vaccines this semester. \u201cAt this point in time, our view is that unless the government mandates vaccination, in the Quebec context we cannot legally require it,\u201d says a statement from school spokesperson Fr\u00e9d\u00e9rique Mazerolle. The Quebec government\u2019s vaccine passport system mandates vaccination when accessing non-essential services, and McGill is implementing the passport for non-essential on-campus activities such as sports.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>READ: More than virtual: How universities have embraced pandemic learning<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>McGill will return to about 85 per cent in-person teaching activity and is asking students to be in Montreal for the start of term, with the exception of those experiencing unavoidable <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/trip-and-travel\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"10\" title=\"Trip &amp; Travel\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">travel<\/a>, permit and quarantine delays. Accommodations will be available for vulnerable students and employees who have appropriate medical documentation.<\/p>\n<p>The school\u2019s safety plan for the upcoming semester \u201cinvolves several layers of protection,\u201d says Mazerolle, including mask requirements, distancing in non-classroom environments, contact tracing and optimized ventilation. McGill will continue working with the government to adapt plans and safety measures.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_1226758\" style=\"width: 830px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-sizes=\"auto\" class=\"wp-image-1226758 lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNIVERSITY-CAMPUS-LIFE-GUPTA-SEPT24-01.jpg\" alt=\"A volunteer helps a new student move into residence at St. Thomas University in Fredericton; universities are seeing an increase in demand for student housing(Photograph by Chris Donovan)\" width=\"820\" height=\"547\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">A volunteer helps a new student move into residence at St. Thomas University in Fredericton; universities are seeing an increase in demand for student housing (Photograph by Chris Donovan)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Residence\"><\/span><b>Residence<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>After months of reduced residence capacity, some schools, like the University of British Columbia, are opening their doors to more students. Matthew Ramsey, director of university affairs at UBC Media Relations, says UBC is seeing demand for student housing return to pre-pandemic peak levels and is prepared to meet the full capacity of 12,500 resident beds. \u201c[Provincial] health guidelines indicate that the university can return to on-campus activities and that includes residences,\u201d says Ramsey. \u201cThe Vancouver housing market is very challenging for students, and the university recognizes that demand.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While buildings may operate at full capacity again, residence life will look a little different. As per B.C.\u2019s guidelines, students living in residence must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. They\u2019ll also have to abide by a set of rules. Any parties, for example, that residents want to have must be \u201cpre-registered for staff approval.\u201d Ramsey says that students have received information about public health orders and UBC\u2019s COVID-19 rules, as well as residence rules, through multiple channels and emails. If they choose not to adhere, they might face disciplinary proceedings that could include ticketing by the RCMP, investigation by the non-academic misconduct committee, loss of privileges, suspension and possible expulsion.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>READ:\u00a0It\u2019s time for Canadian universities to go\u00a0gradeless<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Other schools, limited by provincial health guidelines, are sticking with reduced residence capacities. Dalhousie residences will be open at 80 per cent capacity this fall under single-occupancy restrictions, says Bryson. In July, the CBC reported that, along with the University of Victoria and Queen\u2019s University, Dalhousie had turned down some residence applications.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_1226760\" style=\"width: 830px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-sizes=\"auto\" class=\"wp-image-1226760 lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNIVERSITY-CAMPUS-LIFE-GUPTA-SEPT24-03.jpg\" alt=\"Orientation programming has moved online or outside (Courtesy of Nick Pearce\/Dalhousie University)\" width=\"820\" height=\"547\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Orientation programming has moved online or outside (Courtesy of Nick Pearce\/Dalhousie University)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Events\"><\/span><b>Events<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>As long as health guidelines permit, Dalhousie\u2019s \u201cstudents can expect a return to on-campus events and programming,\u201d says Bryson. The final week of August was a sneak peek into what that might look like. The school\u2019s New to Dal program was developed for first- and second-year students to \u201cdiscover everything student life has to offer with a mix of in-person and virtual activities.\u201d The festivities continued into the opening week of school with in-person workshops on building skills for first-year students, as well as student-union-hosted trivia, sporting and karaoke events. The Dalhousie student union\u2019s website makes it known that contact tracing will be mandatory to attend fall programming.<\/p>\n<p>Students at U of T experienced a similar hybrid O-week, but with \u201cmore in-person activities in small groups for those living in residence,\u201d according to the spokesperson. The school offered campus tours, meet-and-greets, scavenger hunts, outdoor movie nights and craft sessions, silent disco in the quad, carnival <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a>s and a video-games night on their roster of in-person events.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>READ:\u00a0Deferred maintenance: Universities can\u2019t keep up with expensive upkeep and repairs<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Other schools, such as the University of Calgary, opted to stay closer to the kind of programming we\u2019ve seen over the past year, including a largely online orientation. Apart from an in-person scavenger hunt, the school focused on online workshops covering topics such as reintegrating to the physical campus, speed-friend-making, mental health, consent and equity, and diversity and inclusion. The student union also planned an in-person, self-directed scavenger hunt for the first week of school as well as free yoga classes later in the semester.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Sports\"><\/span><b>Sports<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Many varsity athletes will return to fields, courts and rinks after a season away from competition. Most schools have mandated vaccines for athletes, the concern being that sports often require close contact. While many aspects of campus life depend on changing provincial health guidelines, athletics is one that takes into account other provinces\u2019 rules as well.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>READ:\u00a0The lost year in education<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u201cWith athletics you\u2019re not only talking about the students on your own campus,\u201d says Ryan Sullivan, associate vice-president, enrolment management at St. Thomas University (STU) in Fredericton, STU athletes need to either be vaccinated or undergo regular testing, but Sullivan says testing won\u2019t always be enough to compete. Anyone travelling to Nova Scotia from New Brunswick, for example, must be fully vaccinated or self-isolate for seven days upon arrival.<\/p>\n<p>Some schools, including the University of Regina, are also implementing audience capacity limits, as per public health guidelines. According to an email statement, the university will allow audiences at indoor sporting events, but only at 50 per cent capacity and with an expectation that audiences follow university protocols, including masking.<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" name=\"ednote\"><\/p>\n<p><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\">*Correction, Oct 7, 2021:\u00a0<\/b><i data-stringify-type=\"italic\">This story has been updated to include a recent reports of large crowds gathering at parties on campus and at university homecoming events.<\/i><\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<p><em>This article appears in print in the 2022 University Rankings issue of<\/em> Maclean\u2019s <em>magazine with the headline, \u201cMeet you in the quad.\u201d<\/em><br \/>\n<span class=\"ctx-article-root\"><!-- --><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async defer crossorigin=\"anonymous\" src=\"https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/sdk.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/general\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">General category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/education\/campus-life-at-canadian-universities-during-the-second-pandemic-school-year\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#Campus life at Canadian universities during the second pandemic school year&#8221; As provinces ease pandemic restrictions, most universities in Canada are planning for some sort of a return to campus this fall.\u00a0Forget protocol on packed lecture halls, universities now have to crack down on house parties and homecoming crowds.\u00a0* Each school must abide by public&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":351434,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/UNIVERSITY-CAMPUS-LIFE-GUPTA-SEPT24-02-766x431.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[67806,10574,117373],"class_list":["post-351433","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-editors-picks","tag-education","tag-on-campus"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/351433","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=351433"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/351433\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/351434"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=351433"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=351433"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=351433"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}