1 May

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Semester 2

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Current students on-shore

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DVCA

I hope this email finds you well and you are coping with the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 restrictions. Our Student Services team are available if you need advice, support or someone to talk to.

While the number of new COVID-19 cases continues to fall in Queensland, the Government measures and restrictions around social distancing, gatherings and travel are still in place. As the timeline to lift restrictions is unclear, UQ has made a number of decisions in relation to Semester Two to enable you to plan for your academic studies for the remainder of this year.

The impacts of COVID-19 has meant that we have had to delay the commencement of Semester Two 2020 with scheduled classes starting one week later on 3 August and finishing on 30 October 2020.

The 2020 Academic Calendar can be found here. The following is a summary of the Semester Two 2020 adjustments:

• Orientation for students will be online Wednesday 29 July - Saturday 1 August with some activities on campuses subject to Government restrictions.
• Teaching will be delivered online for Semester Two, regardless of your location, to mitigate against restrictions being relaxed and then tightened again as we have seen in other countries. We are working on reintroducing on-campus and extra-curricular activities to enhance your learning experience, in the anticipation that society will return to a degree of normality in the not too distant future. We will communicate further detail about this as soon as possible.
• Census Date and Withdrawal without Financial Penalty for Semester Two will be 31 August 2020.
• Withdrawal without Academic Penalty for Semester Two will be 30 October 2020.
• You can view the Semester Two course offerings online from Monday 11 May. If you are concerned about your courses or program of study, please get in touch with your Course Coordinator or Student Services.
• If you are expecting to graduate this year, your award will be conferred in the normal timeframe and your official documents will be posted to your home address.

Access to campuses in Semester Two:

Campuses will remain open for students to access study spaces, subject to current Government restrictions. As Government restrictions start to lift, and we are clearer on the timeline for this, we will aim to have a phased return to campus activities.

We know many students have practicums and placements as part of their programs. Some of these are able to proceed under current guidelines while others will need to wait for the Government to ease the restrictions. Your School or Faculty will be in touch with further information as it becomes available.

We hope to be able to proceed with graduation ceremonies early in 2021. If you are expecting to graduate this year, you will have the opportunity to celebrate your achievements in one of the ceremonies.

We are committed to assisting our students as far as possible to remain on track with studies. Over the next few months, we will be updating course options for Summer Semester, should any student wish to continue to study from November 2020 until the start of Semester One 2021.

We know you will have lots of questions about your studies in Semester Two. We encourage you to review our FAQ page. If you cannot find the answer, our Student Services team are available to assist.

Best wishes for the remainder of Semester One.

Joanne

Professor Joanne Wright
Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic)