Coronavirus (Covid-19): current information for members of Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences

What should students do who have been in a recognized risk area within the last 14 days?

1. Since August 8, every person entering from a recognized risk area has been obliged to be tested for a corona infection. If your test is negative and the responsible health department has not made any other statements, you can return to the university. However, please continue to watch whether you develop symptoms afterwards!

2. Make an appointment with your family doctor immediately by telephone.
Outside of office hours, the emergency medical service can be reached on 116 117.

3. Please clarify questions about your courses directly with the lecturers electronically.

Information for travelers from the Federal Ministry of Health: https://www.bundesgesundheitsministerium.de/coronavirus-infos-reisen.html

In Lower Saxony there is still no quarantine requirement for trips within Germany.
The ban on accommodation also does not apply to people who are absolutely necessary and cannot be postponed because they travel for business or medical reasons.
Every member of the university can therefore travel to the place of work or study, unless they are not in personal quarantine or have acute symptoms that indicate a corona infection.

See also the information page of the State of Lower Saxony.

The Robert Koch Institute differentiates between so-called K1 and K2 contact persons, depending on the time interval and intensity of contact with the infected person. In both cases, please stay at home and do not come to the university! Please clarify questions about your courses directly with your lecturers electronically.

Contact person classification

Information page of the state of Lower Saxony: What you should do if you suspect a corona infection

1. Since August 8, every person entering from a recognized risk area has been obliged to be tested for a corona infection. If your test is negative and the responsible health department has not made any other statements, you can return to the university. However, please continue to watch whether you develop symptoms afterwards!

Please stay at home in the time between the test and the test result and use the extended options of the home office during the corona pandemic.

2. Please inform your manager immediately about the matter electronically or alternatively the following contact persons:

Contact persons in the faculties:

• Agricultural sciences and landscape architecture: Deanery AuL, 0541 969-5110, Dekanat-al@hs-osnabrueck.de 
• Engineering and computer science: Deanery IuI, 0541 969-3712, dekanat-iui@hs-osnabrueck.de 
• Institute for Music: Matthias Vornholt 0541 969-7050, m.vornholt@hs-osnabrueck.de 
• Management, culture and technology: Deanery MKT, 0591 80098-201, dekan-mkt@hs-osnabrueck.de 
• Economics and social sciences: Deanery WiSo, 0541 969-2140, wiso@hs-osnabrueck.de 

Contact person in personnel management:

•    Reiner Haut 0541 969-7087, r.haut@hs-osnabrueck.de

3. Make an appointment with your doctor immediately by telephone. Outside of office hours, the emergency medical service can be reached on 116 117.

5. Inform our contact persons and your technical management about the likely resumption of your work on site (after consultation with a doctor).

6. If the health department instructs you to quarantine, please submit this to personnel management.

7. If you do not have any work equipment at home, please do not come to the university to get it.

8. You can access Outlook and NetCase via web access (msx.hs-osnabrueck.de, www.netcase.hs-osnabrueck.de).

Information for travelers from the Federal Ministry of Health: https://www.bundesgesundheitsministerium.de/coronavirus-infos-reisen.html

In Lower Saxony there is still no quarantine requirement for trips within Germany.
The ban on accommodation also does not apply to people who are absolutely necessary and cannot be postponed because they travel for business or medical reasons.
Every member of the university can therefore travel to the place of work or study, provided they are not in personal quarantine or have acute symptoms that indicate a corona infection. (See also: Information page for the state of Lower Saxony)

Business trips to risk areas are not permitted. The university strongly recommends that you refrain from private trips to recognized risk areas and adapt your personal behavior to the applicable recommendations.

The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) differentiates between so-called K1 and K2 contact persons depending on the time interval and intensity of contact with the infected person. Please refer to the recommendations of the RKI, as described in the infographic. If you develop symptoms yourself, please follow the guidelines in the section "What should I do if I develop symptoms that indicate Corona?"

Both as a K1 and K2 contact person, please use the extended options of the home office during the corona pandemic. Here, too, we ask you to inform your supervisor or, alternatively, the contact persons mentioned in the previous section about this matter.

If you fear that you are infected with the corona virus, first contact your family doctor by phone to clarify the suspicion and how to proceed. Outside the general practitioner's office hours, the emergency medical service can be reached on 116 117.

As long as your suspicion is neither confirmed nor refuted, please do not come to the university! Employees please use the extended options of the home office during the corona pandemic.

Further information on the website of the state of Lower Saxony: What you should do if you suspect a corona infection

The university management regularly informs students, lecturers and employees by email about the current situation and how to proceed.

April 2021

March 2021

February 2021

January 2021

December 2020

November 2020

October 2020

July 2020

June 2020

May 2020

April 2020

March 2020

From March 29th, 2021 until May 02, 2021 there will be no face-to-face events, face-to-face exams and colloquia. Exceptions are:

• Necessary laboratory work in the context of studies, degrees and project work (max. 2 students in the laboratory)
• Examination reviews (max. 2 students per appointment)
• Oral third-party exams

www.hs-osnabrueck.de/de/elearning-competence-center/

At the campuses and in all university buildings, the currently applicable hygiene standards will also be implemented for limited presence operations from March 2021. In this way, we want to enable our first-year students to get to know the lecturers and fellow students personally and promote personal exchange between students and lecturers in a secure framework.

No attendance selection process may take place until March 28, 2021 for the filling of temporary and permanent budget positions / SQM. We urgently recommend not planning any attendance selection procedures for the time being either. Please let the applicants in the procedure be informed about the time delay due to the current situation. All information on the procedure can be found on the OSCA intranet, constantly updated.

Public events, specialist conferences and colloquia with external participants in attendance may not take place on the premises of the university until at least May 31, 2021. Working meetings with external participants are allowed with up to 25 people in suitable rooms. Larger numbers of people are to be discussed with the Dean's Office. The minimum distances of 2.5 m or 6.5 m2 per person must be observed.

When moving around in all university buildings, a mask is required. This rule is to be seen in connection with and compliance with the existing general rule of at least 1.5 meters between people meeting each other. The following information:

• Wear mouth and nose protection in all situations where a distance of 1.5 meters cannot be maintained, for example in the office or rooms where this is the case.
• Wear mouth and nose protection in all waiting areas (library etc.) that are located directly in front of the building entrances as well as in halls (Lingen campus) or foyers (AB building).
• It is not necessary to wear a face mask when moving around outside (cafeteria in front of the cafeteria, park in Haste, parking lots, etc.) if the distance rule is observed.
• It is also not necessary to wear mouth and nose protection in offices, taking into account the distance rule (1.5 m distance and 6.5 square meters).
• It is not necessary to wear mouth and nose protection during physical work on experimental areas and the like in the open air, taking into account the distance rule.
• Please also note the hygiene standards for a limited presence in the summer semester 2021.

• Always pay attention to the general information of the library that is updated promptly at www.bib.hs-osnabrueck.de/en/ and in particular the currently applicable usage regulations at www.bib.hs-osnabrueck.de/#c8958517 .

The cafeterias at the Westerberg and Lingen locations are generally. The cafeteria at the Haste site and the bistro on the Caprivi campus will remain closed. But also note the developments here and find out more at https://www.studentenwerk-osnabrueck.de

The canteens on the Westerberg and Lingen campuses only offer canteen to go options. The meal must be pre-ordered the day before by 11:59 p.m. via the SWOSY app and can be picked up in the selected period.

The Haste cafeteria and the bistro on the Caprivi campus will remain closed. You can find all further information on the website of the Studentenwerk Osnabrück.

The presence mode remains set. It is not yet clear whether and when the sport can be restarted. The University Sports asks for a little patience with regard to the further design of the sports program and the handling of sports courses that have already been booked. As soon as more information is available, the Center for University Sports will inform you accordingly.

If you have technical questions, the staff at the ServiceDesk will help you.

Current information on the examination period, planned from January 23, 2021, can be found on the OSCA intranet in the area of study and teaching.
In the FAQs on examination and matriculation matters, you will find information on theses, colloquia and options for withdrawing from examinations. If you have any further questions, please contact the Student Administration Office.

Although the university buildings are currently closed, you can validate your CampusCard.

Campus Westerberg: AB building from Monday to Thursday between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. and on Fridays between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. (Access is only possible via the main entrance on Albrechtstraße.)

The validation machine is also available in the central library on the Westerberg campus during the library's opening hours.

Campus Haste: HR building, Opening hours

Lingen campus: KH building (ground floor), access to the hall is only possible via the south entrance, opening hours

There are a few points that must be observed for on-site events:

• In the seminar and laboratory rooms, the tables must be arranged so that the seats are approx. 2.5 meters apart.
• In the case of laboratory internships with several workstations and / or workstations, only one person is allowed to work at one workstation / station.
• Devices and work surfaces are disinfected after each change of group or ward.
• The seminar and laboratory rooms must be ventilated several times a day - at least every 45 minutes, during every break and before every event - with the windows fully open for several minutes. These measures are appropriately preset in rooms with ventilation systems.
• In order to be able to understand chains of infection, attendance lists (with assignment to the seating arrangement) must be kept for courses using a developed IT solution.

In addition to the general hygiene rules for the 2020/21 winter semester, the following rules apply to instrumental and vocal pedagogical lessons:

• Hands must be disinfected after entering.
• If possible, mouth and nose protection should also be worn during lessons.
• There must be at least 10 square meters of space available per person. This results in a safety distance of 3.5 m, which must be observed. The maximum number of participants per student group is 5 people.
• Hands should be washed or disinfected immediately before and after class.
• In the room, teachers and students should always stand next to each other.
• Conductors either wear a canopy with a clear visor or - if they want to act frontally - use a plexiglass wall.
• With wind instruments, a stocking or something similar should be stretched over the bell and the condensation should be caught with newspaper. The newspaper is disposed of at the end of the lesson.
• Equipment and work surfaces are disinfected after each change of group or ward (e.g. ballet bars).

You can find further information on instrumental and vocal pedagogical lessons on the intranet.

Many students are currently completing compulsory practical projects in companies and non-university institutions. There, the work opportunities of the students are partially restricted by the respective management. If the companies order the students to work from home because they can continue to work there sensibly, this has no effect on the recognition of the academic achievements. The same applies if the projects are temporarily suspended and are to be continued after the work restrictions. In this case, the students should inform the student administration and the supervising lecturer. If the companies terminate the project contracts without notice, the course work will still be recognized if at least two thirds of the work has been completed. Otherwise, a suitable supplementary task can be set by the university as a substitute if this is justified from the perspective of the supervising lecturer. If this is not the case, the project must be started again at a later point in time.

In light of the dynamically changing conditions for travel, residence and study abroad, Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences advises students to organize their study plan in such a way that a stay abroad, originally planned for Summer Semester 2021, is postponed to a later semester. This recommendation applies in particular to destinations which are listed as international risk areas according to the Robert-Koch-Institute (RKI – the public health institute in Germany). 
When deciding for or against a stay abroad, please note the important information listed here (PDF in German).

Visiting Students:

In view of the current restrictions, the Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences recommends postponing a guest study visit to a later date. This advice applies in particular to travel from countries or regions that the Robert Koch Institute (the German Public Health Insitute) identifies as international risk areas.

Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences invites you to take part in individual online courses from your home country: Join the ‘Osnabrück Global Classoom’. 
If you would like to come to Osnabrück despite the likely restrictions, you are very welcome.

When making your decision, please note the important information about online teaching, semester times, entry and residence restrictions.

Degree-seeking students:

The Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences warmly welcomes all international degree-seeking students to the coming winter semester, which will take place in a combination of online and face-to-face events. If you are unable to come to Germany at the beginning of the semester, please contact the Center for International Students at international@hs-osnabrueck.de

Please note the following information on:

Corona - Entry into Lower Saxony - Osnabrück
Corona - Entry into Lower Saxony - Lingen
Corona - Studying at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences Summer Semester 2021
Corona - Rules of Conduct in Osnabrück and Lingen
Corona - Info Housing Service Summer Semester 2021

In principle, work must be performed and service operations maintained during the period of the Corona crisis. The following detailed regulations apply from November 2nd, 2020 until further notice.

Employees can use the possibilities of working at home, but they can also work in the university's premises while respecting hygiene standards.

People with an increased health risk due to relevant previous illnesses (e.g. diabetes, cancer, dialysis, chronic heart and lung diseases, organ transplants, immunodeficiency diseases, further details) are exempted from the obligation to attend, provided they continue to pay their remuneration. The release takes place in consultation with the line manager, who forwards the relevant information to the HR department.

If you have any questions, please contact your HR administrator.

If employees and teachers have to ensure the care of their minor child due to the closure of a day-care center or school, no other care is guaranteed and measures such as domestic work are not feasible or appropriate, a time off work with continued payment of the remuneration in accordance with Section 29 Para. 3 TV-L granted. If you have any questions, please contact your HR administrator.

The Family Service in the Equal Opportunities Office continues to offer advice and exchange. Feel free to contact the equal opportunities office to describe specific challenges or to jointly design support options. To make an appointment for a telephone conversation, please first send an email to: Gleichstellung@hs-osnabrueck.de 

You can find more information on the reconciliation of work and responsibility in Corona times on the intranet.

The health department decides on a quarantine. You will usually receive written documents for this. In the event that you do not receive any documents, we would ask you to send a short e-mail to your personnel department, which includes the period of the quarantine and the responsible health department. If the quarantine goes without illness, please use the options of the home office. Please note the quarantine period on the late registration. If the quarantine goes hand in hand with an illness, please submit a certificate of incapacity for work, which can currently be requested again by telephone. In the case of self-determined voluntary quarantine, please do your work in the home office. Planned vacation in quarantine? If you receive a certificate of incapacity for work, the corresponding vacation days will be credited back to you. Alternatively, you can work from home and postpone the vacation days after the quarantine. Please coordinate this internally. Of course, you can also just start your vacation. Details on the intranet

The Federal Foreign Office warns against all unnecessary tourist trips abroad.

The travel warnings of the RKI or the Federal Foreign Office must be observed in this respect. Nonetheless, if employees of the university visit a country or area that is particularly affected according to the travel advice of the RKI and AA, they bear the sole risk (e.g. illness, quarantine on site, obstacles to return travel).

What should teachers and employees do who have been in a recognized risk area within the last 14 days?

Business trips should currently be reduced to the absolute minimum. Travel to risk areas is not recommended.

Many students are currently completing compulsory practical projects in companies and non-university institutions. There, the work opportunities of the students are partially restricted by the respective management. If the companies order the students to work from home because they can continue to work there sensibly, this has no effect on the recognition of the academic achievements. The same applies if the projects are temporarily suspended and are to be continued after the work restrictions. In this case, the students should inform the student administration and the supervising lecturer. If the companies terminate the project contracts without notice, the course work will still be recognized if at least two thirds of the work has been completed. Otherwise, a suitable supplementary task can be set by the university as a substitute if this is justified from the perspective of the supervising lecturer. If this is not the case, the project must be started again at a later point in time.

The eLearning Competence Center (eLCC) presents teachers with options and tools with which they can keep teaching online.

Platform for exchange among teachers
Numerous colleagues have already registered in the collaboration environment set up by the eLCC in “Microsoft Teams” for the exchange of experiences for all teachers. Feel free to use the HS_Dozierendenteam to exchange information about tools, tools and didactics.
Link to the team room: http://bit.ly/corona_solidargemeinschaft 
 
On the homepage of the eLCC you will find instructions on how to join this team room:
https://www.hs-osnabrueck.de/fileadmin/HSOS/Homepages/eLCC/Teamraum_beitreten.pdf 
Instructions on how to use "Microsoft Teams":
https://www.hs-osnabrueck.de/fileadmin/HSOS/Homepages/eLCC/Anleitung_Microsoft_Teams.pdf 

The Learning Center offers you a page on the OSCA portal with materials for self-study aimed at teachers.

Current information on extending the processing time for theses, the form of theses and the implementation of colloquia in online format can be found on the website of the Student Administration Office.

According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI): cough, runny nose, sore throat and fever, some sufferers also suffer from diarrhea.

Notes from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI):

• Contact the responsible health authority immediately
• 14 days of home quarantine with daily contact with the health department

according to RKI:

• primarily via airway secretions
• fecal-oral transmission also questionable - detection of coronaviruses in stool samples from infected people has been demonstrated.

14 days are still assumed (RKI).

The 10 most important hygiene tips from the Federal Center for Health Education provide a good overview to protect yourself from infectious diseases, such as: B. Regular and thorough hand washing, keep hands away from your face, sneeze in the crook of your arm or a handkerchief and keep your distance in the event of illness.

In view of the flu, these measures are advisable everywhere and at any time.

Robert Koch Institute (answers to frequently asked questions)
https://www.rki.de/SharedDocs/FAQ/NCOV2019/FAQ_Liste.html 

Federal Foreign Office (travel and security information)
https://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/de/ReisenUndSicherheit/reise-und-sicherheitshinweise/letzteaktualisierungen 

Federal Ministry of Health (topic page)
https://www.bundesgesundheitsministerium.de/coronavirus.html 

World Health Organization WHO (topic page)
https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus 

Infektionsschutz.de: Prevent infections
https://www.infektionsschutz.de 

Federal Center for Health Education
https://www.bzga.de