Jan. 11, 2023

Happy new year to our campus community! As we begin 2023, please keep in mind UC San Diego’s current campus safety protocols.

Testing: Required if you develop symptoms consistent with COVID-19. Required on Day 1 and Day 3 for students moving in at the start of a new quarter. Recommended for those who have used the restroom facilities in a building with a positive wastewater signal (find out if your building has a positive signal on the COVID-19 Daily Dashboard).

Masking: Required in all clinical areas. Required in all residential facilities until Phase 2 is announced. Required for those who receive a yellow thumb on their symptom screener for 10 days after their exposure to COVID-19. Required for those who have symptoms but test negative for COVID-19 (mask until symptoms have resolved).

New and returning Tritons who have moved into their residential suite should be aware of required masking and testing guidelines. All students living on campus must conduct a PCR test on the day of arrival, and again on Day 3. You can do this by picking up a self-administered test kit at a campus vending machine (new students are encouraged to get their campus ID prior to arriving on campus; a campus ID is needed to access vending machine tests). In addition, masks are required in all residential areas until Phase 2 is announced. Learn more on the Student Housing Safety page.

Yes, students and campus employees who receive a positive COVID-19 test result from a PCR test done with a provider outside of UC San Diego or a home rapid antigen test must report their result. 

Students: If you test positive after completing a rapid antigen test or a PCR test received outside of the university, notify the Student Health Services (SHS) COVID team through MyStudentChart > Messages > COVID Request. Please include the date and type of the positive test. The SHS COVID team will send out isolation instructions.

Campus employees: If you test positive for COVID-19 from a rapid antigen test (either at home or one from a campus vending machine), you must upload your test results directly to your MyUCSDChart. Go to Menu > Questionnaire > UCSD Employees Only - Report COVID Home Self-Test. Please answer the questions and upload a photo of the results of your home test. You should also report your positive test result on your symptom screener and follow the guidance provided. 

Guidance is available for supervisors and managers who have a team member that tests positive for COVID-19, including instructions on how to support the team member in reporting their positive test, getting cleared to return to on-site work, and submitting a Potential Workplace Exposure Notification.

Supervisors and managers play a key role in ensuring that campus employees are consistently completing the daily symptom and exposure screening. Questions about your role in symptom and exposure screening, how to manage notification emails, what to do if an employee fails the screening and more can be found on the Human Resources FAQ page here.

To learn more, visit the Return to Learn Questions & Answers page.

If you have specific questions or would like to submit feedback about the Return to Learn program, please email rtl@ucsd.edu.