Rector Hendrik Lehnert informs on behalf of the Rectorate of the University of Salzburg together with the chair team of the ÖH University of Salzburg, Laura Reppmann, Lara Simonitsch and Manuel Gruber, about the current COVID situation in Salzburg and the next steps at PLUS.

COVID measures at PLUS: Next steps

“Dear staff and students,

You have certainly heard that the federal provinces of Salzburg and Upper Austria will go into lockdown starting next Monday. This means we must introduce new measures that will – unfortunately – have a significant impact on the university’s operations. At this point in time, we assume that the lockdown will last until (shortly before) Christmas.

The aim of the university’s previous approach was to enable face-to-face teaching and examinations with the greatest possible security; we have succeeded well in this so far. Nevertheless, we see the need to significantly reduce contact and have therefore decided, in consultation with the other universities and colleges, to also switch to online teaching as much as possible from Monday, 22 November 2021 (like the plan in place for the summer semester 2021). We ask for your understanding if we are unable to provide all details at this point in time, as the official regulation text is not yet available. However, the most important measures at the PLUS as things stand today are:

• Courses and examinations must be held online. Courses that cannot be substituted in an online format, for instance in laboratories or in sports modules, are still exempt from this, but the Covid prevention team must be notified, and they are to be held exclusively with the 2G rule. Provisions will be made for students who are unable to provide proof of 2G and substitute classes will be offered at a later date. We ask the course leaders to provide students with the relevant information about any attendance restrictions as soon as possible after consulting the head of department.
• Examinations are to be held online, and late cancellations must also be permitted. Individual examinations or board examinations are permissible under 2G conditions if all participants agree.
• PLUS buildings will remain open, but with reduced opening hours (details to follow).
• The University Library will remain open, e. loans and returns are possible (please pay attention to altered opening hours). You can find up-to-date information on the University Library homepage.
• Working from home is recommended if operations allow it; this decision lies with the respective supervisor. The 2.5 G rule continues to apply for work at the university; in offices with more than one person, at least 10 m² should be available per person. Taking turns work from home is advised where conducive and appropriate.
• Information on sports courses at the University Sports Institute (USI) and the Alpenstrasse gym can be found on the  USI homepage.
• Extra-curricular events cannot be held and must be cancelled.
• Commuter certificates for staff can be issued by the department heads; for students attending courses, they can be issued by the course leaders; a template can be found  here (form only available in German).

Although it is still unclear how long the lockdown will last, these measures will be in place at the PLUS until the end of the winter break (7 January 2022). As you can imagine, there are of many questions that cannot be resolved at this moment, so please refer to the Covid intranet pages for ongoing information and only use the Covid prevention email address for urgent matters. Thank you very much for your understanding!

Stay healthy!

Hendrik Lehnert on behalf of the Rectorate
Laura Reppmann, Lara Simonitsch und Manuel Gruber (Chairing Team of the Austrian Students’ Union Salzburg)“