When do you think universities will open?

[googlepoodle]

I would think they would be definitely be working to a September deadlines for the new academic year.
But do we think any sooner? I am professional services staff and currently working from home.

We don't have semesters...

Anyone teach a clinical subject?
No idea how we are going to do that in September. The theory part will all be ok online but practical work on patients?

Force of habit. We technically have trimesters but don't use the third one much. I'm wondering if that will change for next year

I can't see many students signing up for online only first year. What a nightmare that would be for the sector.

We have terms but they work like school terms - assessment in term 3. Not sure we could shift to half year modules entirely.

Is that FE? Yes, on that kind of system there's less room for manoeuvre with the summer.

I was wondering if the high unemployment rates by September, and certainly by December, might push students into studying rather than taking a whole year out.

I also wonder how and when the first mergers or closures will start. Not good.

Yes, I teach a health care practical subject.

The students currently aren’t allowed on placement and if things are still the same in Sept I don’t think they’ll be allowed in placement then. They’ve missed a massive placement block already.

I can’t see split entry working. Yes it would achieve social distancing but would double the teaching so you’d need nearly double the staff. Universities are losing millions, there’s been an immediate recruitment freeze. Won’t be taking more staff on.

No, we are a pre 92 campus university. We have a mix of full year modules, one term standalone and one term follow on modules.

@hopsalong I’m not sure the risk of catching it is low for students (probably higher as in close contact in freshers, parties etc). It’s just they will probably show only mild symptoms but they could be carriers.
But we will have to open at some point and that sept/Oct date seems key.
I think a lot of support staff may continue off site to minimise spread. But social distancing of students during university classes seems pointless if they are all going out to group activities afterwards!

I would think that freshers week (in my distant memory) will be a (very!) intimate coming together of students from every corner of the globe.

If that’s not the end of social gathering, I’m not sure what is!

But social distancing of students during university classes seems pointless if they are all going out to group activities afterwards!

Social distancing during classes is impossible. At my place, we teach in cramped, crowded classrooms, many of which don’t have windows. I imagine that’s the same in most universities. At the end of the teaching hour, corridors are rammed full of people, and there are bottlenecks in various points of many buildings. Every autumn, without fail (and I’ve been teaching for nearly twenty years), I get whatever virus is going around campus. Inevitable, when you are in a room with 80 students coughing in your direction! I’m dreading potentially having to go back when people are still being infected. The alternative (online teaching, lots of students deferring, redundancies) is pretty awful as well, though.

My daughter is on placement next year. If she wasnt or it is cancelled she will be defering the year. The current uni cohort have already had this term disrupted by strikes and now the virus. If universitys are not operating as normal I think many students will be opting out it is about the social aspects and also opportunity to debate and utilise resources that contributes to the whole experience.

Mine too, maleficent - finished an incredibly disrupted second year. I don't see why we should pay full whack for another year of 'skin of the pants' provision, so I will be encouraging offspring to demit for a year and go back when things have settled down.

^^
They might well not want to - my daughter has made great friends. Some from accommodation and some from her course. She wouldn’t want to not be going through with them.

And what would they do for the year at home? There will be no spare jobs or very few and probably no overseas travel until 2021.

Interestingly Boston University has already cancelled in person classes till Jan 2021 and it is being widely rumoured that Harvard and MIT will do the same.

All of my daughters friends are in agreement....either placement goes ahead or defer and then finish all together. Many students feel the same on line studying would be a very poor substitute and lack of social element not worth the time and expense. Have every confidence she would get some paid work, volunteer and maybe sneak some travel at the end in.

Every autumn, without fail (and I’ve been teaching for nearly twenty years), I get whatever virus is going around campus
Same here, and I have asthma.
I may need to refuse to come to campus if we're teaching in person in October. Funnily I get nothing in September when the DCs go back to school.

If students decide not to start courses, blended or remotely, then there is no guarantee those courses, or universities, will be there to teach those students in this future. This is a major crisis for the sector.

We're looking to put as much Autumn teaching online as possible - we tend to have long thin modules spread over two terms so it's feasible this way. But while continuing students would largely be OK with that, the experience for new students would be awful and we're planning to run some sort of online social things for the new ones.

And trying to anticipate student number control, and a shit load of other really significant issues. In the meantime all the student and facility and process improvement projects which would have tangible benefits to a range of people are put on the back-burner.

They are not shut! Do you just mean the buildings?

Of course that's what she means @Casino218

'Just' the buildings. Like it's all totes normal apart from that

Do you think universities will allow large scale deferrals? I think maybe not? Perhaps a cap on the number, or a deferral til January start? If most students deferred a lot of universities would be in incredibly serious trouble. I'm not sure how it works if you didn't originally apply for deferred entry.

Can totally see why current students might prefer to suspend and come back next year. But that creates huge structural problems, because what do we then do with the current offer holders, going through a totally crap A-level experience? There's a pretty tight cap on total numbers/ resources (esp. accommodation) in many university settings, so students deferring en masse means asking 18 year olds (currently not finishing school properly) to take forced gap years as well. That might be fine for some but is very problematic for students who are less privileged. And then what do we do with next year's year 13s, who will want to start in 2021?