GW is continuing to monitor the ongoing public health situation and abiding by public health guidelines from the District of Columbia.  We are committed to delivering the highest-quality GW experience for all of our students as we continue to follow up-to-date practices and local regulations to best ensure our community's health and well-being. Our goal is to create a safe and healthy campus environment, and our reopening plans will continue to include strategies to protect the GW community and encourage individual responsibility. 

Due to the vaccine requirement, all SEAS on-campus graduate courses will be taught primarily in-person for the Spring 2022 semester. Exceptions to this include courses that have always been taught fully online and those courses developed for our Flex Start program that supports new graduate students who are unable to relocate to the DC area due to visa issues or travel restrictions. 

GW has decided to require staff, faculty, and students who are in-person for the Spring 2022 semester to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to being on campus. Students who are taking classes online only will not be required to show proof of vaccination.

All graduate students who are taking classes on campus this spring semester must be fully immunized two weeks prior to the first day of classes, January 10, 2022. As an admitted and/or incoming graduate student, the COVID-19 vaccine will be included as part of GW’s immunization requirements that are due by the beginning of the fall semester. The District of Columbia Immunization Law requires that all students under the age of 26 enrolled at the University, provide proof of certain immunizations prior to registration. All graduate students, regardless of age, will be required to submit COVID-19 immunization documentation. 

For more information about the vaccination requirement, please visit the GW Coronavirus Website. More detailed information about the requirement is available in the FAQs.  

Attention international students residing outside of the US

GW will accept any vaccine authorized for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or the World Health Organization (WHO). The current FDA-authorized vaccines are available online. Authorized-WHO vaccines are listed here (under “Finalized”). As of May 3, 2021, the WHO and/or FDA have authorized Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca and the Serum Institute of India vaccines. 

GW will work closely with students who received vaccines that have not been authorized (or approved) by the U.S. FDA or the WHO. Once you arrive in the U.S., you will be individually evaluated by the Colonial Health Center, which may include antibody testing to assess your immune status. Further care and individual recommendations will be based upon this evaluation. 

GW will work with any students who are experiencing barriers to obtaining a vaccine or proof of vaccination from another country or obtaining a vaccine in the US. We recommend that international students register for a U.S. FDA- or WHO- authorized vaccine. When in the U.S., you should use your D.C.-area on-campus or off-campus address. Information on how to register to receive the vaccine in Washington, D.C., Maryland or Virginia is available here. The vaccine is available to individuals based on residency and not on citizenship status, and is provided at no charge. Please be assured that we will work with each student to ensure that GW SEAS will be able to accommodate your needs for the start of the Spring 2022 semester. 

If you have any questions regarding this vaccination requirement, please visit the "International Students" section of the vaccination FAQ webpage or email [email protected] or call +1 (202)-994-5300 and select option #4.

Technology in classrooms:

All classrooms will be equipped with web conferencing capabilities (including Zoom, WebEx and Blackboard Collaborate) and recording capabilities (including Echo360 lecture capture) to accommodate those who may need to be away from campus due to illness or as a part of your instructional continuity plans. 

Physical distancing in classrooms:

Given the vaccine requirement, we currently anticipate beginning the fall semester with no physical distancing in classrooms and labs. As part of fall planning, there is a contingency for moving to 3-foot physical distancing if that should become necessary to maintain continuity of in-person instruction. In many classrooms, 3-foot physical distancing is within the regular capacity of the classroom.