Fordham Forward FAQs for Student Testing and Quarantine

Testing

Am I required to be vaccinated?

As of September 1, students, faculty, and staff are required to be fully up-to-date, as defined by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): individuals under 50 who have received a full series of COVID-19 vaccines and one booster shot, and individuals 50 and older who have received a full series of COVID-19 vaccines and two booster shots.

Individuals are eligible for the first booster 5 months after the final dose of the initial series; and are eligible for a second booster 4 months after the first booster. The University will continue to consider medical and religious accommodations for individuals who request them.

Faculty and staff who have been fully vaccinated should send an image of their completed vaccine card to [email protected] and [email protected].

Is the vaccine and booster available at Fordham?

Yes. The University will resume on-campus COVID-19 vaccinations on August 1. .

How do I  gain access to campus?

Fordham will discontinue required daily screenings on VitalCheck as of August 1, but will continue to use VitalCheck to manage vaccine and testing requirements, and for integration with the ID card system for access to campus.

While daily screening will not be required for all individuals, Vitalcheck will continue to send a daily reminder text that can be accessed by anyone who has and needs to report symptoms and access telehealth appointments (particularly for employees and graduate students). Asymptotic individuals will no longer have to complete the daily attestation.

To access campus, make sure to upload proof of vaccination/booster.

Am I required to be tested for COVID-19?

The University will offer on-demand testing and testing for suspected exposure, and for students only, diagnostic testing, but will discontinue surveillance and return-to-campus testing in the Fall semester. (Employees who have COVID-19 symptoms should not come to campus, but should see their healthcare providers for diagnostic testing.)

The University will continue to require weekly testing for individuals with medical or religious vaccine accommodations, or who are not yet fully up-to-date with their vaccines.

Fordham recommends that everyone returning to campus for the Fall semester take a COVID-19 test (PCR or rapid antigen) prior to arrival on campus, especially individuals who are traveling from outside of the New York metropolitan area. Anyone who receives a positive test result should complete their isolation before coming to campus. In August, the University will share testing locations and times for the Fall semester.

You can track the number of COVID-19 positive cases on . 

Am I required to wear a mask?

On campus, masks are recommended but not required in classrooms, labs, work settings, and public spaces for individuals fully up-to-date on vaccinations. (The CDC's mask guidelines say that individuals may "wear a mask based on your personal preference, informed by your personal level of risk.") All individuals may wear masks in any setting if they choose to do so. Faculty may require masks in classrooms and laboratory settings, if they believe the particular circumstances warrant such measures. 

NOTE: Faculty may require masks in classrooms and laboratory settings, if they believe the particular circumstances warrant such measures.

Exceptions:

• Unvaccinated individuals with an exemption must still wear masks.
• Masks remain mandatory on Ram Vans and in University Health Service locations (offices, and testing and vaccination sites).

Isolation and Quarantine Procedures

What if I  test positive for COVID-19?

If you have COVID-19 or have symptoms, isolate for at least 5 days. Day 0 is your first day of symptoms or a positive test. Day 1 is the first full day after your symptoms developed or your test specimen was collected.

If you are fever-free for 24 hours (without the use of fever-reducing medication) and your symptoms are improving or you never experienced symptoms, you can test on or after day 6 using a rapid/antigen test (not a PCR test).

If your rapid test is negative, please complete this Symptom-Free Attestation Form to notify us. If your rapid test is positive or you are continuing to experience symptoms, you need to remain in isolation for 10 days. If you leave isolation before day 11, wear a well-fitted mask any time you are around others inside your home or in public.

Note that after a confirmed case of COVID-19, you may continue to test positive on a PCR test for an average of 90 days. However, a rapid or antigen test is only likely to be positive if you are still at risk of spreading infection OR you have contracted COVID-19 again, so it is an accurate way to test.

What if I have been exposed to COVID-19?

If you have close contact with someone who is COVID-19 positive and have received a COVID-19 booster vaccination; OR completed the primary series of Pfizer or Moderna vaccines within the previous 6 months; OR completed the primary series of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine within the last 2 months:

• You do NOT need to quarantine. You should be tested approximately 5 days after exposure.

If you have close contact with someone who is COVID-19 positive and have completed the primary series of Pfizer or Moderna vaccines over 6 months ago and have NOT received a COVID-19 booster vaccination; OR have completed the primary series of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine over 2 months ago and have NOT received a COVID-19 booster vaccination; OR are partially vaccinated (only 1 dose of a 2-dose vaccine series); OR are unvaccinated:

• Notify Health Services or University Contact Tracing; AND
• Quarantine for 5 days; AND
• Get a PCR test on or off campus on day 5 and wait for the results; once negative results are received (likely late on day 6 or possibly on day 7), you can leave quarantine; AND
• For an additional 5 days, wear a well-fitted, layered mask whenever you are around other individuals, indoors or outdoors.

For all contacts, regardless of vaccination status, if symptoms occur, you should immediately quarantine until a negative test confirms that your symptoms are not attributable to COVID-19.

I am traveling from another state or country to Fordham. Will I have to quarantine upon my arrival?

Asymptomatic travelers entering New York from another country, U.S. state, or territory are no longer required to test or quarantine. Quarantine is still recommended for all travelers who are not fully vaccinated or have not recovered from laboratory confirmed COVID-19 during the previous 3 months.  These quarantine recommendations are not required by Fordham, and students who wish to self-quarantine must make their own arrangements to do so off campus.

Students living overseas who are not vaccinated before they arrive in the U.S. will be required to notify Fordham in advance so they can be vaccinated upon arrival. Those students will be required to test weekly until they are 2 weeks past their final vaccine dose. .