How Universities Can Prepare To Open Up After The Coronavirus

In the middle of March 2020, universities across the nation took the collective step of sending students back to their homes in order to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. An outstanding step that helped save the lives of many during the COVID-19 outbreak. The move has now left universities trying to plan the education of their current students, while also drafting a plan to reopen at the end of this outbreak.

With situations like this being the rarest, it is quite obvious that most people have no idea how to come back from this. However, since education must not stop for anyone no matter what, colleges have made the transition to digital in these times. But, it only solves a part of the problem for colleges. The part of the equation also requires them to open the colleges for newer students who will be making a move to college education this year.

In such a scenario, the colleges need to reopen as soon as it is possible so that education can stay on track.

To help with this, the University Grant Commission or UGC of India has drafted a set of guidelines in association with the HRD ministry of India that dictates the important dos and don’ts of the situation. Here is a look at these guidelines:

Dos and Don’ts for Universities Planning to Open After Lockdown

The most important thing that the guidelines said was about the admissions process, which says that the process must be digitised and made online so the students can avoid making a visit to the college in the current conditions.

It also further states that students who have the facility of the internet at their homes must study online instead of coming to the classroom. As a continuation of the stay at home rule, the UGC also said that students and teachers with a history of serious ailments must also prefer the online education mode.

As a measure to increase the awareness, the UGC also has advised colleges to stay in touch with health facilities. This would help them provide a proper mechanism of quarantine, while also helping them stay at the top of the situation at all times. Maintaining hygiene and tracing contacts at common places like kitchens, canteens, and libraries would be really important.

In line with this, classes where a large component of practical knowledge is vital, then the labs must be sanitised after every class to stop the spread. Also, to avoid crowding in labs, classes can be divided into groups, where one group attends the lab while the other groups study at other places while maintaining social distancing. Proper management and regulation of the movement of outsiders in the college must also be monitored.

An International Approach

While there are some really great examples coming from countries like Germany and Australia where they have begun to slowly roll students into smaller groups that can attend the campus, the burden on the system still hasn’t lightened up for anyone. On one hand, teachers are beginning to work extra to teach students both in-class and online, on the other, students are trying to adjust to the transition between online and classroom teaching. There are lessons of good governance and ill-timed decisions around the world that are teaching us the right way to move forward at the end of this pandemic.

It is important to keep these things in mind and follow the necessary guidelines every day, every hour, and every minute. Because what may initially seem like an isolated case can quickly turn into an uncontrolled outbreak as that is the very nature of this disease. As one of the top 10 universities for engineering in India, it is our duty at Poornima University to not only make sure that our students stay on top of their education, but also that they feel safe coming to the college whenever we reopen. For online admissions, get in touch with one of our experts today.