Masks are required in classrooms, healthcare facilities labs, shuttles, studios or other locations where in-person classes (including examinations) are taking place. Everyone should continue to consider their own personal risks and decide for themselves whether they want to continue to wear a mask in all or certain situations.

Practicing good hygiene such as frequent hand-washing is a sound health practice. We’ve installed hand sanitizer stations throughout our campuses, along with reminders to avoid touching your face after touching surfaces.

We continue to recommend maintaining a safe distance and uncrowded conditions whenever possible.

Temple strongly urges all those that are eligible receive a booster shot. Boosters are the best way to prevent yourself from becoming infected or becoming seriously ill if you are infected.

If it has been six months or more since your last dose of a COVID vaccine, you are eligible for a booster shot. Boosters will be made available to eligible students, faculty and staff based on availability of the vaccine. Booster shots are also readily available in pharmacies, doctors’ offices and through public health organizations. Health Services will resume offering vaccine and booster clinics beginning the week of Jan. 10, 2022. Schedule an appointment through Health Services. Temple Health System is also offering COVID-19 boosters. Learn more about getting vaccinated at Temple.

Temple is partnering with the city of Philadelphia to protect our community by limiting the number of large in-person gatherings. More information regarding upcoming events will be forthcoming. For the time being, students are encouraged to limit their gatherings to their social groups.

Temple Student and Employee Health have several testing options. Learn more about testing on campus.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, so too has the university’s response. With rising positivity rates, the emergence of the delta variant and the city of Philadelphia’s Aug. 13, 2021 mandate requiring full vaccination at higher education institutions, the university has implemented this update to its vaccination protocols. All students, faculty and staff must have either received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine (rather than being fully vaccinated) or an approved medical or religious exemption by Oct. 15. 

Temple students, faculty and staff must submit their vaccine information to the health portal by Oct. 15 for their first shot and by Nov. 15 for their second shot in a two-dose series (Pfizer or Moderna). Learn more about the vaccine mandate and how to get vaccinated at Temple.

Temple students, faculty and staff were required to submit their vaccine information to the health portal by Oct. 15 for their first shot and by Nov. 15 for their second shot in a two-dose series (Pfizer or Moderna). 

Read more details about how to get vaccinated at Temple and how to upload your vaccine record.

Effective April 2022, masks are optional in most campus spaces, including in common areas, dining halls, meeting rooms, nonclinical office spaces and residence halls.

Masking will continue to be required in classrooms, healthcare facilities, labs, shuttles, studios or other locations where in-person classes (including examinations) are taking place.

Following updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Temple’s mask guidelines have changed. Cloth masks alone are no longer adequate for protecting yourself and others. The CDC recommends that you wear the most protective mask you can that fits well (completely covers your nose and mouth) and that you will wear consistently. Temple students and employees now have three options for how to mask while on campus. 

• Good: a surgical mask with multiple layers of nonwoven material

• Better: a surgical mask with a cloth mask over it

• Best: a KN95 mask

A limited number of KN95 masks will be made available on Main Campus. Learn more about where on Main Campus masks will be distributed.  

Masks are not required outdoors unless it is impossible to keep a safe distance, but this guidance is subject to change to meet the safety needs of the university community. 

The Temple community can take the following steps to get fully vaccinated and inform the university that they’ve done so. Learn more about vaccines at Temple. 

• Vaccines are widely available throughout the city, the region and the country, and they are safe, effective and free. Everyone is strongly urged to get a vaccine. Students, faculty and staff can call 215-204-7500 to schedule an appointment to receive the vaccine at Student Health Services, 1700 N. Broad St., 4th floor.

• Uploading your vaccine information to Temple’s health portal is a critical step in providing information needed to effectively plan for the future. If you do not upload your vaccine information, you will be considered unvaccinated by the university.

If a Temple community member does not provide evidence of vaccination, they will be subject to enhanced weekly (or more frequent) testing. Unvaccinated individuals will also be subject to additional restrictions, such as limited opportunities for gathering in groups, activities in close quarters and university sponsored travel. Students should be aware that many university partners have implemented vaccine mandates and being unvaccinated may limit opportunities like internships, clinical placements, student teaching and even research experiences.

Vaccinated individuals are not required to participate in the university’s COVID-19 testing program. Those who have not uploaded proof of vaccination are considered unvaccinated and will be regularly tested for COVID-19. Read information about COVID-19 testing at Temple.

All common areas, particularly places that many people touch (such as doorknobs, elevator buttons and railings), are being cleaned with hospital-grade quaternary disinfectant A-456II, which is a product listed by the Environmental Protection Agency as protective against COVID-19. All bathrooms are cleaned and sanitized daily.

As always, if you have a health condition that supports the need for reasonable accommodation, you should contact Temple’s Office of Disability Resources and Services (DRS) for assistance at drs@temple.edu or 215-204-1280.

Yes. Temple enhanced our current campus testing and contact-tracing initiative. Our dedicated team at Student and Employee Health Services has been testing for the virus since the early days of the pandemic, and that work continues today. Read more about symptomatic and asymptomatic testing for students and staff. 

In addition, Temple announced a new 10-hour contact tracing training certification course. The Contact Tracing Training Course teaches individuals of broad skill levels how to track the spread of the COVID-19 virus. With enrollment open to all at no or low cost, hundreds have already enrolled in the training, including Temple students, health professionals and members of the public interested in fulfilling this essential role amid the current pandemic. The training is being run by Temple’s College of Public Health.

If you have personal circumstances that lead you to prefer a full or partial online course load, you should consult your academic advisor and/or academic program coordinator, who will be able to assist you.

Please note that tuition and fees are set regardless of the method of instruction and will not be refunded in the event instruction occurs remotely for all or any part of the academic year.

• Four public health pillars: Everyone must adhere to the university’s four public health pillars (use of facial coverings, frequent hand-washing, adherence to physical distancing and health monitoring).
• Testing and tracing: The university continues to test students, faculty and staff for COVID-19 on campus, and has a robust contact-tracing initiative. Student and Employee Health Services have been testing for the virus since the early days of the pandemic, and that work is continuing. Learn more about the university’s testing and tracing initiatives.
• Changes to physical spaces to facilitate distancing and healthy environments: Plexiglass shields are installed in reception areas to ensure safe separation in places where distancing might be difficult, and reminders to remain at least six feet apart in public areas are affixed to floors and walls in campus buildings. Some seating was removed in public spaces to reduce density in common areas as much as possible. Hand sanitizer stations are installed in campus buildings.
• Preparations to respond to a rapidly changing situation: Responding to the coronavirus pandemic has required the university, like other institutions, to be nimble when it is necessary to preserve the health and safety of our community. The university was ready to pivot to primarily online instruction this fall.

Everyone has an important role to play in preventing the spread of the coronavirus and other respiratory illnesses. There are many simple steps everyone can take to keep themselves and others healthy. These include the following.

• Frequently wash your hands using soap and water for at least 20 seconds (the time it takes to sing the “Happy Birthday” song twice).
• Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol in the absence of soap and water.
• Wear a face covering over your nose and mouth when in public places where it is difficult to maintain physical distancing from others (read tips on face coverings from the CDC).
• Adhere to physical distancing guidelines by staying at least six feet away from others in public places and avoiding parties and other large gatherings.
• Avoid touching your face, especially before washing your hands.
• Regularly clean and disinfect “high-touch” items (e.g., cell phones) and areas in your home (e.g., bathrooms, doorknobs).
• Stay home and contact your healthcare provider if you develop symptoms of illness, especially cough, shortness of breath, fever, severe fatigue, gastrointestinal issues, loss of sense of taste or smell, or muscle aches.
• Follow directives issued by the CDC as well as local and state government and health authorities.

If you are sick—especially with symptoms of cough, difficulty breathing, fever or chills, sore throat, shortness of breath, or loss of taste or smell—contact your healthcare provider, Student Health Services (215-204-7500) or Employee Health Services (215-204-2679). Be sure to tell them your symptoms and inform if you believe you may have been in contact with someone with COVID-19. They can further screen you for COVID-19 and, if needed, help you get tested and recommend the next steps you should take.

It is important to note that a positive test will not affect your standing with the university. Our main goal will always be the health and safety of our students, faculty and staff, so that you can continue to work toward your learning goals.

In Pennsylvania, everyone five years of age and older is eligible to be vaccinated. Everyone 12 years of age and older are eligible to receive the booster. Learn more about getting the COVID-19 vaccine in Pennsylvania.

The university is committed to carefully monitoring and responding to new information about COVID-19 and its impacts. In developing and preparing for our return scenarios, it is understood that our plans must be flexible and include contingencies for changing conditions over time. We are prepared to deviate from outlined plans in order to take swift actions to keep our community safe.

A coronavirus is a type of virus that can cause a wide range of illnesses, from the common cold to severe pneumonia. The novel coronavirus at the center of the current epidemic has been named SARS-CoV-2, and the illness it causes has been named COVID-19 (abbreviation for coronavirus disease 2019). This is a new strain of coronavirus.

The most common symptoms of COVID-19 include chills, cough, fever, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea. Symptoms and their severity vary widely from person to person, and some people infected with the virus may exhibit no symptoms at all but still be able to spread it. If you are concerned you could have the virus, consult the CDC’s symptom self-checker tool, and read more information from Student Health Services.

COVID-19, the illness caused by the new coronavirus, is mainly spread through direct contact with saliva or respiratory droplets, similar to a cold or the flu. According to the CDC, person-to-person spread of this coronavirus is most likely to occur with close contact, or contact within six feet, with an infected person who coughs, sneezes or talks, and those droplets are inhaled by someone else. Some people infected with COVID-19 do not display any symptoms but can still spread the virus.

The novel coronavirus causing the current outbreak of illness has been officially named since the outbreak began. SARS-CoV-2 is the name of the virus itself, while COVID-19, which stands for coronavirus disease 2019, is the name of the illness the virus causes.

Monitoring your health means being vigilant and looking out for the development of any symptoms associated with COVID-19, which may include but are not limited to cough, shortness of breath, fever or chills, body aches, fatigue, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and congestion or a runny nose. You should check your temperature regularly to ensure you do not develop a fever, and contact a medical professional if you do develop a fever or any other symptoms. 

Quarantine is separating people who appear to be healthy but may have been exposed to a contagious illness to make sure that they do not become sick and spread the illness to others. It typically covers the “incubation period” of a given illness, which refers to the period of time between exposure and when symptoms of the illness are known to appear. 

Isolation means keeping people who are sick and contagious separated from people who are healthy to ensure that they do not spread the illness.

There are four important steps you can take to protect your health and the health of others in your household and community. These measures are as follows.

• Face coverings. While masks are optional in most campus spaces, that does not mean the pandemic is over. Everyone should continue to consider their own personal risks and decide for themselves whether they want to continue to wear a mask in all or certain situations.
• Frequent hand-washing. In addition to encouraging our community members to wash their hands frequently, hand sanitizer stations will soon be installed throughout Temple’s campuses, along with reminders to avoid touching your face after touching surfaces.
• Maintaining a safe space between you and others. Physical distancing reminders will be affixed on floors and walls of campus buildings to ensure that everyone remains at a safe distance when on-campus operations resume. Classrooms and other common spaces will have similar distancing requirements.
• Monitoring your own health on a daily basis. Taking your temperature, watching for other symptoms and, if warranted, seeking help through your primary care physician or Student and Employee Health Services are important for everyone on campus. Most importantly, if you are sick, stay home and avoid contact with others to avoid spreading illness.

You should wash your hands with soap and water for 20 seconds (about the length of singing the “Happy Birthday” song twice). Consult this CDC page for more specific guidance on proper hand-washing and hand sanitizing techniques.