Dear Medical Student, 

We hope that you are safe and healthy. This message contains important updates and provides details on some essential actions required of you so that the University can successfully prepare for the end of Fall 2020 and the start of Spring 2021. Please read this email carefully and note the various deadlines.

End of Fall Term 

The fall semester will conclude with remote classes and a remote course/block exam after Thanksgiving Break. Students must maintain their current frequency of COVID-19 testing for as long as they are either using campus facilities or interacting in-person with other members of the Brown community.

Thanksgiving Break

For students who plan to leave Providence for Thanksgiving Break or at the end of fall semester, it is important for them to help protect their health and the health of the home and community that they are traveling to and. We encourage students to reduce in-person contacts and practice strict social distancing and mask wearing for 14 days prior to their date of departure — especially if they plan to travel by airplane, train or bus. For example, students who plan to leave Providence before Thanksgiving should plan to reduce in-person contacts around Nov. 10. We also encourage you to check with local boards of public health regarding travel restrictions that may be in place for your destination. Additional information on travel restrictions can be found on the CDC website. 

Semester Transition and Routine COVID Testing

All first- and second-year medical students will need to log into the MyBrown platform to enter important information about the semester transition. 

While we anticipate that most students will disengage with campus facilities between the Thanksgiving Break and their return to studies in the first week of January, we need you to confirm your plans. Students who will disengage with campus between fall and spring semesters will be paused from testing until they return in January.

Using the form in MyBrown, medical students should enter by Friday, Nov. 13, the date when they plan to disengage for fall. (You will be able to select from a date range; if you are not certain of your final date of engagement, please select the latest likely date.)  

Medical students with a spring semester on-campus status will also use MyBrown to indicate by Sunday, Dec. 13, their return/arrival date for the spring term and return to testing. 

Students who utilize campus facilities while they have paused testingwill be referred to the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards.

If you have questions about testing or need to make changes after Nov. 13, email the Student Testing Call Center at studenttesting@brown.edu or call 401-863-6500. (Students cannot make changes to their testing between Dec. 18 and Jan. 4.)For additional resources, please consult the information on the Healthy Brown website, especially the information on the student testing page.

Returning to Campus for Spring

Students travelling outside the Providence area during break should follow all Rhode Island Department of Health guidelines for travel upon their return, as well as all applicable guidelines for states to which they are traveling. Additional information on travel restrictions can be found on the CDC website. 

Students who were on leave for the fall and will be returning for the spring semester will be required to agree to the Student Commitment to COVID-19 Community Health and Safety Requirements (Student Commitment) by Friday, Dec. 18, 2020. You will receive a follow-up email with further information and an individualized link.

In Closing

Thank you for your ongoing efforts to care for yourselves and others through this difficult time. Please consult this FAQs page for questions about the semester transition form. For questions about testing, email the Student Testing Call Center at studenttesting@brown.edu or call 401-863-6500. 

Best wishes for the final weeks of the semester. 

Sincerely,

Jack A. Elias
Dean of Medicine and Biological Sciences

Eric Estes
Vice President for Campus Life