Freshers’ week will begin on September 28th, a week later than originally planned, College has announced this evening.
All other students will begin college on September 28th as previously planned, meaning that freshers’ week will clash with their first teaching week.
In an email statement, Thomas Deane, a Trinity media relations officer, said that the delay “is necessary following a decision by the Department of Education to delay the release of Leaving Certificate results and to allow the necessary time for the processing and acceptance of CAO offers for students”.
The first week of teaching for first years will therefore begin a week later. However, any teaching time lost as a result of the delay will be made up later in the year.
“We very much look forward to welcoming students to Trinity in the coming autumn”, Deane added. “We are preparing to have face-to-face teaching for all students as far as is compatible with the prevailing social distancing guidelines at the time.”
Trinity today announced that students will receive their timetables in mid-September.
As Trinity prepares to re-open, undergraduates and postgraduates will be able to access libraries from July 20th if they “have a purpose/reason for doing so” such as studying for reassessment or carrying out research for dissertations.
In an email to students, Vice-Provost Jürgen Barkhoff said: “As facilities and services on campus will be limited, you should not come onto campus to socialise or for no specific purpose. The numbers of students on campus will be closely monitored.”
He said that campus will remain closed to the general public until at least September 28th, “with the aim of ensuring the potential for overcrowding is minimized and that as many students and staff as possible can safely return to college”.
To access campus, students will be required to present a valid ID card, and will only be able to access campus via Lincoln Place Gate, the Nassau St Entrance and the Science Gallery Entrance on Pearse St. Front Gate will be used for “out of hours” access only.
Meanwhile it was announced yesterday that campus will reopen fully to all staff on August 10th, with a phased reopening beginning on July 20th.
In a video posted on Twitter, Head of Facilities and Services Brendan Leahy said that all staff accessing campus will need to complete a “COVID-19 pre-return to work questionnaire” three days before arriving on campus.
They will also have to complete an online induction course, download the safezone app – which monitors when people enter or leave campus – and have an up-to-date staff card.
Leahy also said that “new modus operandi such as rotas for those in shared offices, contact logs, hygiene protocols” would be introduced at a “local level”, and that staff members would be told about these by their “head of school or area”.
