In view of the Coronavirus outbreak, the Emergency Response Group (ERG) of the College chaired by the Acting Presidents has been closely monitoring the situation. The ERG co-ordinates the precautionary measures and special arrangements to protect students and staff. The health and safety of the College community is our highest priority. Please check regularly the information provided in this webpage. The College will also send emails to students and staff in case there are any updates of the precautionary measures and special arrangements.

Special Arrangements for Teaching and Learning

1. What are the class arrangements in Semester 2, 2019/2020?
2. What are the arrangements for practicums and lab sessions?
3. Are there any adjustments for Semesters 2 and 3 schedules?
4. Will the suspension of classes/practicums/lab sessions delay my graduation or affect my summer vacation?
5. Could IELTS be waived for graduation this year?

Non-academic Graduation Requirements

6. College Seminars are cancelled, will my graduation be delayed?
7. Will internship coordinated by the College be cancelled?

Arrangement on Campus and Services

8. Can students return to the campus for self-study during the class suspension period?
9. Are there any services provided for students during the class suspension period?
10. Is the canteen open during the class suspension period?
11. What are the Preventative and Health Control Measures that have been implemented on Campus?

Arrangement on Library Services

12. What are the opening hours of the Library from 27 April 2020?
13. Will overdue fines incur from 29 January to 19 May 2020?
14. Can I borrow or return library materials in this period?
15. Can I renew borrowed materials online?
16. Can I access e-resources off campus?

Tuition Fees Payment

17. Can I make payment of tuition fees during the class suspension period?
18. Do students need to pay tuition fees for the class suspension period?

Admission Applications and Interviews

19. When could I submit an application for admissions and when would I be interviewed?

Staff on Self-Quarantine and Work Arrangement

20. If I or any of my family members who are living with me have been ordered by the Department of Health to undergo compulsory quarantine at home, do I need to notify my Unit Head?
21. If I am residing in the same building as one of those published by the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) in the “List of buildings with confirmed / probable cases of COVID-19 in the past 14 days”, what should I do?

Research Projects

22. I have some on-going research projects in hand. May I continue to conduct my research studies over the period?

Other Advice and Additional Information

23. What is the advice for students during the period of the Novel Coronavirus outbreak?
24. Where can I get the information about the Novel Coronavirus?

1. What are the class arrangements in Semester 2, 2019/2020?

   On-line teaching will continue for the rest of Semester 2 and NO formal on-campus classes will be conducted. Starting from April 6 (Mon), course instructors may arrange on-campus revisions/consultations for their students, if deemed necessary, to fully achieve the learning outcomes. The revisions/consultations will be conducted in small groups with strict precautionary measures. Students will be informed of the arrangements by the course instructors concerned.

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2. What are the arrangements for practicums and lab sessions?

   Practicums will be suspended until further notice. The College has been keeping contact with the Hospital Authority (HA) and other clinical partners. Practicums will be resumed as soon as possible after ensuring that the clinical environment is safe for practice.

   In view of the rapid increase of confirmed cases of Coronavirus, the College has decided to postpone the lab sessions until further notice. Students will be informed by the respective School/Programme of the arrangements when the lab sessions can be resumed.

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3. Are there any adjustments for Semesters 2 and 3 schedules?

   1. Semester 2 classes will be extended for 2 weeks to 2 May 2020 (instead of ending on 18 April 2020) to give more time for teaching and revisions. Final examinations will be held from 5 May to 19 May 2020 (subject to the situation of COVID-19). The final examinations of some courses have been cancelled after careful consideration by the respective Schools/Programmes. However, students are required to complete other course assessments assigned by the concerned course instructors. The examination schedule of Semester 2 and related arrangements are now available at Registry's homepage.
   2. Semester 3 classes will be deferred for one week to start on 8 June 2020 and end on 25 July 2020 (instead of running from 1 June 1 to 18 July 2020). Final examinations will be held from 28 July to 4 August 2020.

   As the development of the novel coronavirus is still unpredictable, the College will closely monitor the situation. Students and staff will be informed through emails if the suspension period is further extended or further adjustments to the Academic Calendar are necessary.

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4. Will the suspension of classes/practicums/lab sessions delay my graduation or affect my summer vacation?

   The College is offering on-line teaching and has modified some assessment methods accordingly in order not to delay students’ studies. However, practicums, laboratory sessions, mandatory skill assessments and some discipline courses etc. are affected seriously and the deficiencies will have to be made up. Therefore, students’ graduation will have the possibility of delay.

   Students are advised to make themselves available during summer. Students should also be prepared that for some courses, make-up arrangements will only be available when the courses are offered again in the next academic year.

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5. Could IELTS be waived for graduation this year?

   As IELTS is one of the graduation requirements, it cannot be waived. Students who need to take the IELTS should check frequently the examination dates released by its official website: https://www.britishcouncil.hk/exam/ielts/dates-fees-locations

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6. College Seminars are cancelled, will my graduation be delayed?

   All College Seminars have to be cancelled during on campus class suspension period. Video seminars are being arranged. The College is closely monitoring the situations and further arrangements will be made in due course.

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7. Will internship coordinated by the College be cancelled?

   Tung Wah Office Intern Support Scheme (TWOI) will be continued in the summer. Respective students will receive invitation for application and interviews (if applicable) via email later.

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8. Can students return to the campus for self-study during the class suspension period?

   Students are allowed to return to the campus for self-study during the class suspension period. However, body temperature checking is carried out at entrance of campus. All the students are required to wear masks when entering the campus.

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9. Are there any services provided for students during the class suspension period?

   Starting from 27 April, 2020, ALL the administrative/school offices will be open to provide services from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

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10. Is the canteen open during the class suspension period?

    Canteen on the 4/F of KPC will be open on Monday to Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and on Saturday from 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

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11. What are the Preventative and Health Control Measures that have been implemented on Campus?

    1. Preventative Measures

       • Common areas and facilities including floor carpets, door handles, lift button panel covers, and escalator handrails are cleaned intensively with 1:99 diluted bleach or other sterilize agents and disinfected once every three hours during campus opening hours.
       • New infra-red alcohol dispensers are installed at common lift lobbies.
       • Condition of drainage system is checked daily.
       • Contractors and service providers are requested to submit Health Declaration Form when entering the campus.
       • Posters about guidelines for washing hands with liquid soap and water are displayed.
       • Notices are posted inside toilets relating to the proper disposal of used surgical masks.

    2. Health Control Measures

       • Body temperature checking for staff/students is carried out at entrance of campus.
       • All staff and students are requested to wear masks when entering the campus.

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12. What are the opening hours of the Library from 27 April 2020?

    The opening hours of the Library will be adjusted as follows:

    	KPC Library	KHC Learning Center
    Monday - Friday:	9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.	9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
    Saturday	10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.	Closed
    Sunday and Public Holiday	Closed	Closed

Users can contact the Library by the following methods if they have any enquiries:

• Email: lb@twc.edu.hk
• Phone: 3190-6650
• WhatsApp: 5575-1564, 9:30am - 5:30pm (Mon to Fri)
• Zoom-a-librarian: 10:00am - 12:00nn & 2:00pm - 4:00pm (Mon to Fri). For details, please refer to Zoom-a-librarian service at library website.

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13. Will overdue fines incur from 29 January to 19 May 2020?

    Overdue fines incur during this period will be waived (exclude special collection). The Library has informed the users via email about such arrangement.

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14. Can I borrow and return library materials in this period?

    As per the closure of bookshelves area to reduce the spread of the COVID-19, please contact Library staff to retrieve the books you would like to borrow and check-out the items at the counter during the opening hours.  They can also return the borrowed items at the counter or via book drops located at the library entrance and lobby of Tung Wah College Cheung Chin Lan Hong Building (MKB).

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15. Can I renew borrowed materials online?

    Users can renew borrowed materials online via TWC Search. Please follow the steps at: https://www.twc.edu.hk/uploads/files/Lib/Online_renewal_2019_12.pdf.

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16. Can I access e-resources off campus?

    Users can access e-resources off campus using email authentication. Please refer to E-resources User Guide at:
    https://www.twc.edu.hk/en/Administration_Units/lib/guide_and_tutorial/e-resource_guide for information.

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17. Can I make payment of tuition fees during the class suspension period?

    Students can make payment to the College through the payment methods provided by the College as usual. Please refer to the following link for details:

    https://www.twc.edu.hk/en/Administration_Units/fo/our_service/student-area/payment-methods-hans

    Students can also deposit their cheques or payment slips through the FO collection boxes located on (a) 10/F of Tower A of Mongkok Campus, or (b) 8/F of King’s Park Campus, during the period.

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18. Do students need to pay tuition fees for the class suspension period?

    The College collects tuition fees by instalments.

    Whether there are classes or not will not affect the tuition fees payment. But the College will not charge any retake fees if they are caused by class suspension.

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19. When could I submit an application for admissions and when would I be interviewed?

    The College continues to receive applications for the non-JUPAS programmes through the admission system https://www.twc.edu.hk/admission/ . However, in view of the latest situation of COVID-19, the College has decided that online admission interviews/ conditional offers will be given as deemed appropriate (to replace face-to-face interviews).  Applicants will be requested to submit their academic documents for assessment and those who are required to participate in online interview(s) will be informed of the detailed arrangement individually in due course.

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20. If I or any of my family memebers who are living with me have been ordered by the Department of Health to undergo compulsory quarantine at home, do I need to notify my Unit Head?

    Colleagues should inform their respective Unit Heads and the Human Resources Office (hro@twc.edu.hk) through email as soon as possible. They would be arranged to work from home during the quarantined period as appropriate. 

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21. If I am residing in the same building as one of those published by the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) in the “List of buildings with confirmed / probable cases of COVID-19 in the past 14 days”, what should I do?

    As a precautionary measure, colleagues who are residing in the same building as those published by the CHP in the “List of buildings with confirmed / probable cases of  COVID-19 in the past 14 days”, they should undergo 14 days of self-quarantine. The list can be downloaded from the hyperlink https://www.chp.gov.hk/files/pdf/building_list_chi.pdf and enquiries can be made through the CHP hotline at 21251122.

    Colleagues should inform their respective Unit Heads and the Human Resources Office (hro@twc.edu.hk) through email and they would be arranged to work from home during the quarantined period. Colleagues who have developed fever or feel unwell should seek medical consultation and take sick leave.

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22. I have some on-going research projects in hand. May I continue to conduct my research studies over the period?

    Research projects that involve close contact with participants should be avoided. If principal investigators encounter difficulties in meeting the project completion deadline, they could contact the Research Office and apply for project extension.

23. What is the advice for students during the period of the Novel Coronavirus outbreak?

    All students should:

    1. refrain from travelling outside Hong Kong
    2. wear a surgical mask, particularly in crowded areas and public places
    3. consult a doctor immediately if they have any symptoms of the coronavirus (e.g. fever, difficulty breathing or cough etc.) and if they are ordered by the Department of Health to undergo compulsory quarantine, they should notify their School Deans / Programme Leaders.

     

    All students who have travelled outside Hong Kong within 14 days prior to resumption of on-campus classes will be requested to fill in the health declaration form. The link to the e-form will be available when the date for the resumption of on-campus classes is confirmed. According to the Government’s instruction, starting from 19 March 2020, all travellers who have returned from overseas countries are ordered by the Department of Health to undergo compulsory quarantine at home for 14 days.

24. Where can I get the information about the Novel Coronavirus?

    More information about the Novel Coronavirus can be found in the following websites:

    World Health Organization:
    https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019

    The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of HKSAR Government
    https://www.chp.gov.hk/en/features/102465.html

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