COVID-19 POLICY
(Page updated on 21st March, 2021)
Preamble
1. Spring 2021 Semester is commencing from Monday 22th March 2021. Due to the continuing pandemic situation HEC has already given guidelines to all HEIs/DAIs for resumption of academic activities on their campuses. In the light of these guidelines, DSU has formulated this policy for the conduct of Spring 2021 semester. However, same may be reviewed/revised depending on the evolving situation (HEC COVID-19 Policy).
2. The COVID-19 Policy of DHA Suffa University is based on following themes:
a. We have to learn to continue living with COVID-19 in the foreseeable future and excel in performing our functions effectively.
b. Pakistan has been able to continuously avoid major damage to the Economy through adoption of “Smart Lockdown” Policy instead of Complete Lockdown.
c. Education is amongst the few sectors which have not fully resumed its activity, whereas economy needs workforce.
d. Universities need to function and must be opened to students as soon as possible for provision of high-end employees as workforce (with quality education) with all possible / pragmatic COVID-19 protocols.
e. Safety of the Students, Faculty and Staff must remain supreme/top priority during all activities at the University Premises / Campuses as well as in Transportation.
f. The success of the implementation of COVID-19 Policy will depend on the unflinching cooperation by all stakeholders i.e., Students, Parents, Faculty and Staff. This support comprises of full commitment to the following broad directives;
i. Use of Facial Mask while on DSU campuses and elsewhere outdoors at public places.
ii. Observing Social Distancing as per the national directives and as notified on premises.
iii. Washing or sanitizing hands frequently during the day to avoid carrying virus
iv. Voluntary Declaration/Isolation/Staying Home on suspicion of having being infected with COVID-19 virus and notifying the DSU Medical Officer.
v. Following Instructions and Directives religiously and with a patriotic resolve.
Precondition for Returning to University
3. All the returning students have to submit a Health Declaration which states that they are in good health (or, whether they have any health condition), and whether they have undergone any COVID-19 testing and/or treatment during the closure period. All students desiring access to the campus premises will be facilitated by the Designated Authority and their departments.
4. All members of the campus community, including faculty, staff, and students, are expected to adhere to the Guidelines in order to protect the health of its students, faculty, and staff.
Reopening of Campuses / Invitation to Students / Arrival Protocol
5. The University will be inviting all its students to campus for classes such that they have regular but longer intervals in their visits to the premises. There are certain groups of students that cannot progress without face-to-face engagement such as in lab courses to fulfill their psychomotor skill development, final year students working on their design and make engineering projects, doctoral scholars requiring consultation with supervisors or access to their research labs. While ensuring their safe access, this semester the University has also set the goal to resume university campus education for all students but with smart scheduling of classes for each student through the following measures;
a. Campus student strength is not to go above 50% of the total DSU student population at any particular time during working hours. It will be monitored through a central dashboard populated with all program timetables and class strengths.
b. Department are to design their Classes’ Schedules such that their own student density on campus does not peak more than 50% of their overall student strength at any time of the day.
c. Class Student Strength on campus can reach the maximum number as much permitted after ensuring social distancing protocol as per COVID-19 SOPs. At the same time an online class could have up to 100 students per session.
d. Online sessions accommodating up to 100 students per session are managed through Zoom and/or MS Teams and DSU Moodle LMS platform, encouraging and facilitating merging of smaller sections of a course taught by one faculty member as a single section.
e. All Graduate classes having smaller strength will be accommodated on campus by the respective departments.
6. Voluntary Option for Online Learning is being extended to the students so as to further decrease the student footfall on DSU campuses. Students are being given the liberty to opt for online learning in coordination with their department if their course can be taught online without compromising on quality. Such arrangements are visible in the available timetables of all programs.
7. Campus Support for Online Classes is provided by the University to those students that have difficulty in studying online due to lack of internet and/or power at their homes. The departments will welcome these students on campus to avail facilitation to attend their online lectures on campus by using DSU computing platforms available in department labs, library and through uninterrupted free WiFi throughout the campus premises. Needless to say that these students will have to abide by the COVID-19 SOPs and also provide their Health Declaration to gain access to campus and its facilities.
8. On-Campus and Online availability of Teachers is ensured in designated student counselling hours. Students studying online will also have the option to come to campus for a Q&A session with their teachers once a week after appointment and information to the Designated Authority by their department. For students attending classes on campus, classrooms have been prepared such that social distancing protocols are met.
9. On campus Implementation of COVID-19 SOPs through the Control, Command and Coordination Cell as well as an Implementation Committee will be carried out by DSU administration and it is to be followed by all stake holders in letter and spirit.
10. DSU first Hostel facility opened its doors to students at the DCK Campus from Fall 2020 semester. The accommodation space and amenities within also require SOPs for safe living which are shared with the hostel borders upon arrival.
11. An upgrade in the DHA Suffa University COVID-19 Policy for opening its doors to students of all semesters for more on-campus classes (allowing higher student density per hour on campus) will depend on the improvement in the regional COVID – 19 pandemic parameters and resulting directives from the Government/ HEC/ CIEC.
Teaching Arrangements
12. Teaching for new and returning undergraduates will begin as planned from 22nd March 2021. Different plans are in place for students of different departments. Keeping in view the HEC directives, particularly the density thresholds relative to campus spaces and infrastructure, and success in implementing the safety protocols, only a subset of students can be accommodated on campus at a particular hour during a working day because of safety consideration.
13. Teaching Modes: The University has remained flexible in adopting a multiplicity of approaches for imparting education to students. These include various combinations of Face-to-Face and Distance learning modes, including Blended and Hybrid learning. The choice of options depends on three major considerations:
a. Certain courses can be taught completely Online without any compromise in quality of content delivered. This will be enabled through the diversity of synchronous and asynchronous student engagement, which was the norm in Spring and Fall 2020 semesters this year.
b. Certain courses need Blended Learning; some portion of class students on campus as expected through a possibility of diverse mix between students consenting and not consenting for campus learning and the rest online from home.
c. Certain courses have to be taught or demonstrated on campus including laboratory and practical work.
14. Class Composition: Some of the classes will be held face-to-face, as in the pre-COVID era. However, in some cases, a Hybrid learning mode will be followed in which some students will be sitting in class while others will be following the class through online video conferencing platforms such as Zoom, MS Teams which were effectively used in Spring and Fall 2020 semesters. The student mix in a class on campus will be dependent on the consent response of students in that class.
15. Class Size: Social distancing requirements have implications on the physical space needed to run a face-to-face class. Therefore, depending on the class/section strength the entire class may be split into smaller sizes to ensure the implementation of COVID-19 SOPs. The University COVID-19 Policy dictates that overall strength of students having on-campus classes at any time of a regular day must be halved by every department. Therefore, more physical classrooms become vacant and available to fulfil the need for extra classrooms on campus through proper scheduling of classes.
Note
16. In case of any difficulty in comprehending the implementation of the COVID-19 Policy, the relevant bodies have been mandated by the Vice Chancellor to execute their functions. They should be consulted through the head of department or student advisor designated by the department.
17. In case of any conflict, the University ruling through the relevant body will be considered and the final authority and jurisdiction will be with the Vice Chancellor, DHA Suffa University.
18. The University reserves the right to update / amend this policy without prior intimation to the University community in order to comply to the directives of the DHA/ HEC/ SHEC/ CIEC or the Government in order to remain compliant to the prevalent laws, rulings and directives.
COVID SOPs
COVID PRECAUTIONS
COVID UPDATES
EMERGENCY CONTACTS
PROGRAM TIMETABLES
PROGRAMS
ACADEMIC CALENDAR
TRANSPORT
COUNSELING
ADMISSIONS
DEGREE AND TRANSCRIPT ISSUANCE PROCEDURE
