Your Back-to-Mac resource guide for the winter semester

winter scene with snow on university campus. A person walks into a building

UPDATED: January 10, 2022

This week, the university released an update to its plan for the winter term based on evolving guidance from the province and McMaster’s commitment to the health, safety and well-being of our university community 

While some plans are still evolving, more information regarding the winter term, key dates, return to classes and staff returning to the workplace is outlined below. 

See the latest restrictions from the provincial government. The below is in accordance with these rules.

University Operations

Residences 

  • Residence buildings will re-open as planned on January 14. Students who require an early return to residence due to international flights or other extenuating circumstances can submit a request with supporting documentation through the residence portal. 

Athletics 

  • Recreational facilities, including the David Braley Athletic Centre, will remain closed until January 27th in accordance with provincial restrictions. 

Campus Store

  • The Campus Store is open for in-person shopping with reduced capacity restrictions and health & safety protocols in place. Please check hours of operation for each Campus Store location prior to visiting. Look up your required course supplies online at textbooks.mcmaster.ca.

Dining 

Parking 

  • Parking Services is offering students, faculty, and staff who have prepaid for a parking permit in January the option to apply for a refund for the month. If you have a McMaster parking permit for the month of January and you have not used your parking permit yet in January, please email parking@mcmaster.ca to apply for a refund by January 14, 2022.  Parking fees continue to apply in all McMaster parking lots.  

Libraries 

  • Mills Learning Commons will open Jan. 10. Accessed via the southeast tower of Mills Memorial Library, the space offers reliable internet, printer access, and study spaces. Hours are available, and will be updated as needed, on the McMaster University Library website.
  • Mills, Thode, and Health Sciences libraries are tentatively set to reopen on Jan. 31 when level-one undergraduate classes are expected to resume in person. Innis Library is closed for construction until 2023-24, with resources being offered through Mills library and online.
  • More details here.

McMaster Museum of Art

Travel 

  • The federal government has updated its advice regarding international travel cautioning against leaving the country for any non-essential reasons.  A Level 3 warning is now in place for all countries.  Additional information can be found on the Government of Canada’s website. 

Events & Meetings 

In alignment with provincial restrictions, events and meeting spaces are closed until January 27. 

Health & Safety 

The university is working hard to continue to maintain the health, safety and well-being  in during our gradual return to campus and are committed to offering layers of protection with the cooperation of every member of our community . 

Testing 

  • The provincial government is now limiting COVID-19 PCR tests to high-risk individuals, and individuals who work in high-risk setting. Students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to review the eligibility criteria for a COVID-19 PCR test and follow isolation guidelines on the government’s website

More information regarding testing can be found here. 

Vaccination  

  • All community members are required to be fully vaccinated or have a valid, approved exemption in accordance with the University’s Vaccination Policies.
  • The current definition of fully vaccinated is two doses of an approved vaccine, as per provincial guidance. However, we encourage our community to get their third dose as soon as they are able, based on availability and eligibility criteria. Bookings are available in Hamilton through the city’s Public Health website.  Information regarding on-campus vaccination clinics will be shared, as they are available. Note: Please do not upload your proof of vaccination (third dose) to MacCheck at this time. 

More information regarding McMaster’s vaccination mandate and other information can be found here. 

Ventilation  

McMaster takes ventilation seriously and continually looks for ways to update our ventilation plan to adopt industry guidelines and best practices. More information can be found here. 

Masking 

The University continues to follow current Public Health requirements for masking, which does not include n95s for higher educational settings (except for specific clinical and health care environments). Masks are required in all indoor spaces. Provincial masking guidance remains unchanged from the fall term. High-quality reusable masks, which meet current standards, were widely distributed to many community members last fall. Information on masking can be found here. 

MacCheck 

All community members are expected to complete daily health screening via MacCheck every time they access McMaster’s campus or an affiliated site. You may notice a few small changes to the MacCheck digital tool. It’s still the same process to login, but you’ll be prompted to complete your health screening using the provincial tool. Details here.

Flexibility

We recognize that there will be challenges for our community at home and on campus over the next few weeks as the pandemic continues and more people are required to isolate, manage their own health and care for family. We are committed to being as flexible as possible as our community navigates through this latest phase of COVID.  If you have or suspect you have COVID-19, please follow the guidance of public health.  

Have a question? Connect with our resource page. 

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