As the University continues to respond to the evolving circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are committed to providing up-to-date information to our community. Below you will find this week’s new and updated answers to frequently asked questions regarding university news, policies and resources.
Please refer to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Resource Center for the full list of frequently asked questions and more information about health and safety and University operations.
Spring 2021
Will the University continue to charge the same tuition rates for the Spring 2021 semester?
We will continue the same tuition reductions in place for Fall 2020: 10% for undergraduates and 5% for graduate students. The discounted rate applies to undergraduate students studying on campus and remotely, and to those living in campus residences and those living off campus.
What sort of resources are available to students studying remotely?
For the Spring 2021 semester, Georgetown is providing our domestic and international students with WeWork’s All Access Benefit, to launch on February 1, 2021. This will provide students with a quiet study space, access to high speed internet and a change of environment, WeWork’s 800 global locations are available in 32 U.S. and 88 international cities.
Who will have access to the WeWork benefit?
Access to Global WeWork locations will be made available to undergraduate and graduate students (including medical, law and nursing students) who are enrolled in spring courses (including Ph.D. students writing their dissertations). Students will receive an email in January with further information about how they can opt-in to indicate their interest in taking advantage of this opportunity.
What is the status of Intercollegiate Athletics?
Our women and men’s basketball teams have returned to campus and began competition in late November. Pending public health conditions, we also plan to return men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s lacrosse and men’s and women’s track & field/cross country to campus in January for training and competition. If conditions allow, we will work to bring more student-athletes back for either training and competition for the Spring and more importantly, for the 2021-22 academic year. Our goal, within permissible guidelines, is to stagger the return of as many student-athletes as possible until all are back on campus and competing.
Health and Safety
How do I register for a One Medical account?
You have two options for registering with One Medical, as part of Georgetown’s public health measures:
- Using the browser on your computer or mobile phone, you can follow the direct link provided by Georgetown to the registration page for One Medical. You will then enter your NetID Georgetown email address and follow the prompts to complete the registration process. Please note that if you use a browser to register One Medical will use cookies and other tracking technologies, as described in the One Medical Privacy Policy.
- You may also register using the One Medical App. After downloading the app, you open the app and click “Not a member? Join today.” Next, you click “Eligible for an employee benefit? Apply code” at the bottom. You will then enter your NetID Georgetown email address and follow the prompts to complete the registration process.
More detailed instructions are available for browser-based registration and for app-based registration.
University Operations and Finances
What are the University’s COVID-19 Helpline’s Hours over winter break?
The University’s COVID-19 Helpline is staffed 9 a.m.-5 p.m. ET Monday-Friday. The Helpline will be closed December 24, December 25, December 31 and January 1. To contact the Helpline, call 202-784-3510 or email covid19-questions@georgetown.edu.
What is the financial impact of COVID-19 on Georgetown University?
As we continue to navigate the financial impacts of the pandemic, we ended the 2020 fiscal year with a deficit and are also projecting a deficit for the 2021 fiscal year. Included in this projection is lost tuition, lost room and board, lost auxiliary revenues—parking, dining, the hotel and the bookstore—as well as the cost of online instruction technology and new health and safety measures on campus. In order to fulfill our commitment to continue employing as many of our community members as possible, while appropriately managing the financial resources of the University, we must:
- Continue the hiring freeze through the end of fiscal year 2021
- Continue the moratorium on travel and entertainment through the end of fiscal year 2021
- Continue to reduce spending on utilities, supplies, and services
How is the University addressing these impacts?
In a message from President DeGioia on April 7, 2020, the University announced a set of initial actions to mitigate against incurred and expected losses. We implemented a temporary hiring freeze, extended our travel moratorium, instituted a new process to review discretionary spending, and paused all salary increases.
In a message from President DeGioia on May 12, 2020, the University announced an additional set of actions to reduce expenses to our Fiscal Year 2021 (July 1, 2020, to June 30, 2021) budget with the goal of putting us in the strongest position to protect Georgetown’s academic and research mission and the livelihoods of all who work at Georgetown as we respond to the impact of COVID-19. These actions include a voluntary reduction of senior leaders’ salaries; continuing to pause salary increases for faculty and staff/AAP, including annual merit increases, and new hiring for staff/AAP; temporarily suspending the university’s retirement contributions; pausing non-essential capital projects; reducing spending on services, travel, and other non-personnel expenses; and implementing voluntary furlough and salary reduction programs.
While layoffs occur at institutions for many reasons, including efforts to reduce costs or address staffing redundancies, Georgetown has worked to respond to the financial challenges created by COVID-19 through these aforementioned efforts which rely on the shared sacrifice of our community members rather than implementing layoffs to respond to COVID. On December 10, 2020, the University announced we will not have COVID-related layoffs, furloughs or pay cuts in Spring 2021, so long as we can achieve 100% capacity through our Redeploy Georgetown program for the Spring 2021 semester. Redeploy Georgetown helps us meet new COVID-19 staffing needs with current staff, rather than using financial resources to hire additional employees or contractors. In order for Redeploy Georgetown to be successful in preventing COVID-related layoffs and furloughs, each campus – Main, Med, Law and University Services – has designated a number of employees who will be asked to participate in the program.
How has Georgetown supported Aramark employees who work on Georgetown’s campuses?
While Aramark employees who work on our campus to provide dining and custodial services and operate our hotel and conference center are not employed by Georgetown directly, they are members of our community, and we are committed to their well-being. Some Aramark associates have been furloughed and placed on extended leave due to reduced dining and hotel operations during the pandemic. We have dedicated financial resources to ensure these associates continue to receive benefits and health coverage through June 30, 2021. Although we expect Aramark’s operations in the coming semester to be very similar to the Fall and thus staffing levels will be fairly consistent, we will work to bring back as many Aramark associates as possible to support campus operations during the Spring.