Fall arrival info about COVID-19 testing, masking, and vaccines
Fall arrival info about COVID-19 testing, masking, and vaccines
Welcome Back to UC Santa Barbara
Dear Student:
As thousands of students and scholars return to campus next week for the fall quarter, there is an increased risk of COVID-19 spreading as community members travel from many different places back to UCSB to study, work, and conduct research. We recommend the following mitigation efforts to help control the spread of COVID-19 at UCSB, and for the success and wellbeing of everyone in our community.
If you are traveling to the campus from outside of the local area:
Within 48 Hours Prior to Returning to the Campus/Santa Barbara Area
Perform a COVID-19 test. If the test is positive, postpone your return to the area for the minimum five-day isolation period. See additional guidance below.
Upon Arrival to Campus/Santa Barbara Area
Please perform another COVID-19 test as soon as possible upon arriving. Free COVID-19 PCR tests are available by self-collection on campus, and rapid antigen at-home test kits are available without charge to all UCSB students, faculty and staff. See information below.
Three Days After Arriving to Campus/Santa Barbara Area
Perform a third test after you have been in the area for three days. 
Students living in Campus Housing can find specific move-in instructions on the Campus Housing website. 
If you have a NEGATIVE COVID-19 RESULT, no report is necessary. Please continue testing according to the schedule recommended above and after close contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case.
If you have a POSITIVE COVID-19 RESULT, report the positive result immediately through the Student Health Patient Portal using your UCSB Net ID. (Campus PCR test results are reported automatically, so no need for you to report those results.) Your message should be sent by using the “Messages” option, followed by “New Message,” and select the “Self report & Upload COVID-19 test result” form. 
If you report a positive result on an antigen test or test positive in a PCR test, you will receive a confidential email from a campus COVID-19 nurse who can provide further advice. Please isolate in your campus residence if you have any symptoms suggestive of COVID-19 or a positive test. Please fill out the “COVID Positive Interview Questions” under the “New Message” option in the Student Health Patient Portal.
For all students:
MASKS STILL RECOMMENDED INDOORS, VACCINES AVAILABLE AT STUDENT HEALTH
Please consider wearing a face mask indoors when you are in shared spaces, at least for the first two weeks of fall quarter, and socialize with friends outdoors if you can. We also highly recommend that everyone obtain the new bivalent COVID-19 booster shot, which will cover the new COVID-19 variants and contribute to our community having healthy fall and winter seasons. The annual flu shot is also required by UC policy, and both these shots are available by appointment through the Student Health Patient Portal.
We are fortunate to be starting the fall quarter in the CDC “low” COVID-19 community transmission level, and we’d like to keep it that way. With everyone’s help and awareness, we are optimistic about the upcoming academic year.
Access Free PCR Testing, Rapid Antigen Test Kits, and Face Masks on Campus

Free COVID-19 PCR testing is available in Building 434, Room 121 (just north of Storke Tower, see linked map) on weekdays for all UC Santa Barbara students, faculty and staff. Appointments can be made through the Student Health Patient Portal.

Free face masks and COVID-19 rapid antigen test kits are available for UC Santa Barbara students at residence hall front desks, the customer service desk at the front of the UCen Campus Store, the Library, the Student Resource Building, and the Recreation Center. 

You are strongly encouraged to make use of these free tests for routine checks and/or if you detect any COVID-19 symptoms. 
Additional Important COVID-19 Information
Please sign up for CA NOTIFY, which can enable anonymous notifications of close contacts from a COVID-19 case.
Students with medical questions can access healthcare providers during weekdays through the UCSB Student Health Service. Join a Line to enter their virtual line system.
The new COVID-19 bivalent booster shots and flu shots are available on campus by appointment every day during the week of September 19th through the Student Health Patient Portal.
For more information, please see the Student Health Coronavirus website and the UCSB COVID-19 Information pages. COVID-19 questions can be emailed to ucsb-covid19@ucsb.edu. 
Sincerely,
Stuart Feinstein, Ph.D.
COVID-19 Response Team Coordinator & Professor of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology 
Vejas Skripkus, M.D.
Executive Director, Student Health Service & Campus Physician
Mary Ferris, M.D.
Campus COVID-19 Clinical Advisor
UC Santa Barbara
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