COVID-19 Vaccination

If you have been within 6 feet for 15 minutes—cumulatively—or been exposed to respiratory secretions of a person with COVID-19:

• Students who are fully vaccinated who have been a close contact with a positive case but do not have symptoms are not directed to quarantine but are required to get tested 3-5 days after exposure and mask and monitor symptoms for 14 days.
• Students who are who are not fully vaccinated (those partially vaccinated and/or those who have an approved religious or medical accommodation) who have been a close contact with a positive case will be required to quarantine for up to 14 days after last contact as determined by health care professional and guidelines from health officials, and should consult with their primary care provider.

Rates of COVID-19 infection and transmission are high among college-aged individuals related to the way young adults live and socialize. Infections cause illness and result in quarantine and isolation which can adversely impact mental health. Vaccination provides an important barrier against many new and more dangerous forms (variants) of COVID-19. By requiring vaccination, we will sharply reduce the potential for outbreaks on campus, while allowing for a thriving campus atmosphere.

Students who are taking courses off campus are required to submit their vaccination information. Students enrolled in online courses are not required to fill out an exemption waiver if they are not vaccinated at this time. Even so, Immaculata strongly encourages that members of our community receive vaccination for the health and safety of themselves and those around them.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, individuals are considered to be fully vaccinated.

• 2 weeks after their second dose in a 2-dose series, such as the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine.
• 2 weeks after a single-dose, such as Johnson & Johnson/Janseen vaccine
• If you do not meet these requirements, regardless of your age, you are NOT fully vaccinated and should take all safety precautions until you are fully vaccinated.

Students who are not vaccinated or have not received an exemption will not be able to attend class. Immaculata University will not provide COVID-19 learning accommodations, students are expected to attend class in the format as listed In their course schedule.

Will requesting a medical or religious exemption impact my ability to complete clinicals, student teaching, internship or other experiential learning requirement?

If you are granted an exemption, you will be able to participate in classes and other activities on our campuses, as long you follow all other safety protocols.  However, any exemption from the University’s vaccine requirement may impact your ability to participate in clinicals, student teaching, internships, etc.

Many hospitals and other clinical sites, as well as other area employers have already announced that they are requiring the vaccine.  We have no control over the vaccine requirements of site locations.  Although we will try to place students with an exemption in a site location where the vaccine is not required, we cannot guarantee that this will be possible.

In addition, it is best practice to put students at different sites throughout their program.  We may not be able to find enough sites that do not require the vaccine to accommodate you, which could limit your ability to complete degree requirements and potentially delay your time to graduation.

If I don’t get the vaccine, can I complete my clinical requirements via virtual simulation?
No. Unless the University must move to fully remote learning based on the spread of the virus or based on state or local requirements, we will not offer virtual simulations.

What is the refund policy for students who need to drop a clinical course?
The University’s Refunds and Academic Credit Policy is located here. If you choose not to get vaccinated and cannot be placed in a clinical site, you must drop your course(s) by the stated deadlines or you will be responsible for tuition charges, as outlined in our Refund and Academic Credit policy.

If I drop my clinical course(s), will I be able to take it in a future semester?
Not completing your clinical requirements as scheduled will very likely delay your time to graduation.

Outbreaks among students have been shown to lead to outbreaks in surrounding communities, including deaths among vulnerable populations. COVID-19 presents one of the greatest disease threats we have seen in any of our lifetimes, and we have decided that requiring the COVID-19 vaccine is in the best interest of our campus community.