JOHOR BARU, Sept 15 — Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) will start allowing students to return to campus on October 15, with priority given to students who need to be present for various reasons.
UTM vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Ts Ahmad Fauzi Ismail said among the categories of students given priority were those who need to undergo Industrial Training on campus, have been required to be at campus by the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE), special status students, those lacking a conducive learning space, as well as new intake students for the 2021/22 session.
He said, however, students would need to apply to the university for the purpose, and wait for approval before making further plans.
“Currently, the university has set a maximum of 6,000 students who will be allowed to enter, and logistical preparations are being planned to enable the movement of students at the campus in a controlled manner.
“As for transportation (to the university), it is either by using their own vehicle, sent by parents who have been vaccinated, or by plane,” he said in a statement here today.
In the meantime, he said as of today, 70.8 per cent of UTM’s 22,635 students had been fully vaccinated, and for those who had not yet received an appointment, the university would provide the vaccination at its Integrated IPT Vaccine Centre on campus.
Apart from that, he said, UTM was also setting up an Isolation Centre that could accommodate 1,000 people, a quarantine centre, on-campus accommodation with one student per room, as well as entry restrictions and standard operating procedures aimed at prioritising the safety, welfare and health of all students and staff.
Meanwhile, in Batu Pahat, Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM) vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Wahid Razzaly said UTHM would give priority to fully vaccinated students who needed to return to campus, especially new students and those in their final year.
He said UTHM would comply with the SOP set for the Higher Education Sector to ensure the safety and welfare of students, and prevent outbreaks on campus.
“UTHM also supports the 20 per cent fee reduction for semester one of the 2021/2022 academic session for all students, where 70 per cent of our students come from B40 families and most of them have been financially affected by the pandemic.
“Therefore, UTHM has provided an allocation of RM4 million to help this group of students, to ensure that they can continue their studies in the upcoming semesters,” he said in a statement, today.
Meanwhile, Wahid said 97 per cent of its staff and 83 per cent of students were fully vaccinated, adding that the university would ensure those remaining completed their vaccination by the end of September. — Bernama
