St Andrews University has told staff and students that online and remote learning is to continue for the rest of the remaining semester.
Ongoing Covid-19 concerns have led the decision not to bring students back to the town this semester, which is due to end at the end of May.
A small number of students who returned to St Andrews over the festive period, mostly medical students who are designated key workers or those whose course requirements mean that remote learning is impossible, will be able to stay put.
It comes almost a month to the day that the Scottish Government told all universities to delay the return of students to campuses until the beginning of March in response to the increased spread of Covid-19 variants.
In an email to staff and students, Principal and Vice-Chancellor Professor Sally Mapstone admitted the university had taken the “difficult” decision that teaching and assessment for the majority of students must remain online only for the rest of this semester.
“I know that this will be a big disappointment to many students, and staff, who had hoped to return to St Andrews and our classrooms in this academic year,” she said.
“This is especially true for many of our final year students who will be unable to conclude their studies in St Andrews in the way we had all hoped.
“We are acting now, however, to provide you with as much certainty as early as we can, having listened carefully to student leaders and our staff, and considered all the evidence available to us on the predicted course of the pandemic.
“It is prudent to anticipate that significant restrictions on travel and other aspects of public life will remain in place in Scotland through the Spring.
“Even if some of those are eased by the Scottish Government as Covid-19 infections fall, we do not believe it will be to a degree sufficient to allow us to bring large numbers of students back to St Andrews and provide comprehensive in-person education.
“I am so sorry that our university and the town will be missing so many of you in the remaining weeks of teaching, and that your university experience continues to be disrupted by the pandemic and its attendant restrictions on all our lives.
“We are taking this step, however, in the certainty that we can fulfil all students’ learning outcomes, and continue to provide our hallmark high quality learning, contact, and support online.
“Certainty also offers more stability, and allows us to concentrate fully on supporting all of you – students and staff – through the remainder of semester, whether you are currently in St Andrews or not.”
Professor Mapstone also sounded a word of optimism, telling staff and students her belief that society is “not too far from the turn of the home straight”.
She added: “Vaccines and our collective adherence to simple prevention mean we are finding a route out of the pandemic, and the promise of an eventual return to most of those things we were taking for granted just one year ago.”
It is understood that no decision about graduation ceremonies has been taken yet, with the situation being kept under constant review.
