New Campaign #RWTHhilft Launched
Let’s stick together – despite the need for distance – and be there for one another. RWTH with its citizens’ forum RWTHextern, sponsoring association Förderverein proRWTH e. V., and AStA Students’ Committee have jointly initiated a relief action to support students put at a disadvantage by the Corona crisis. The idea of “#RWTHhilft” emerged in several areas at the University, based on the wish of RWTH members to contribute financial support. “We feel a strong sense of solidarity and engagement, which is great, and we want to make a difference together,” explains Rector of RWTH Aachen University, Ulrich Rüdiger.
The Freunde und Förderer von proRWTH are initially providing a budget of 30,000 euros for bridging scholarships from a special fund. In addition, they are now launching a fundraising campaign.
Initially, support will be given to students who, for example, cannot participate in the “online semester” due to a lack of equipment or who find it difficult to do so and would therefore be put at a disadvantage. When they receive the students’ applications, the Social Committee of the Students’ Parliament will assess the need for funding and organize the distribution and disbursement of the funds together with proRWTH.
Those who would like to support and donate can transfer a donation with the reference “Bridging Scholarship” to the Förderverein proRWTH e.V.
The bank account details for donations are:
Freunde und Förderer der RWTH Aachen e.V. | proRWTH
IBAN: DE36 3905 0000 0000 0159 41
BIC: AACSDE33
Exams: New Dates Have to Be Replanned
In line with the press release from the NRW Ministry of Culture and Science, no attendance-based classes will be held any time soon. The summer semester will initially commence as an “online semester”, as previously communicated. Attendance-based exams cannot take place and written exams will not start April 24 as previously planned. RWTH will develop and communicate a new plan for examinations as soon as the requirements can better be assessed. No regular oral examinations can be held at present either. The newly planned exam dates must therefore be replanned once more. It is still uncertain when written exams can be taken again.
Summer Semester Starts April 20 as an “Online Semester” Throughout NRW – RWTH Has Been Offering Courses Online Since April 6
There will not be a “zero semester” at universities in North Rhine-Westphalia. NRW Minister for Culture and Science Isabell Pfeiffer-Poensgen wants to give students and universities security in their future planning. RWTH has been offering courses online since April 6, 2020. The NRW Ministry of Culture and Science made the following announcement on April 7, 2020.
Due to the increasing spread of the coronavirus in North Rhine-Westphalia, the start of the summer semester at universities in the state was already postponed to April 20 back in mid-March. It is still unclear whether the contact-reducing measures currently in effect can expire on April 20 or whether and in what form they may have to be continued. Therefore, the Ministry of Culture and Science, together with the NRW State Rectors’ conference, the universities of applied sciences, and the art and music colleges, has agreed to start the current summer semester from April 20. This will initially begin as an “online semester”. The universities have promised to make a wide range of courses available online as part of the solution. This ensures that the summer semester can take place and avoids a so-called “zero semester”, which would put students at a disadvantage.
In the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education at the end of last week, all the states in Germany agreed on the common goal of avoiding a situation where the summer semester would not be credited.
“The health of students and instructors is still our top priority. Since it is currently not certain when universities will be able to resume regular attendance classes, flexible and pragmatic solutions are now required. Starting the semester with online classes is therefore a good alternative. In this way, we are giving the more than 780,000 students in North Rhine-Westphalia and our universities security for planning the coming months,” explains Minister of Culture and Science Isabel Pfeiffer-Poensgen.
RWTH: Article on the Course of Disease in Patients Infected With Covid-19 Published
Researchers at RWTH Aachen University have published a scientific article on the treatment of patients infected with COVID-19. In it, they analyze the course of disease in patients who were admitted to Uniklinik RWTH Aachen in February and March, and thus describe the first cohort of patients in Germany. The focus is on the clinical characteristics and laboratory results of patients with and without acute lung failure, the so-called acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).
Fifty patients were treated, 16 of whom were transferred from other hospitals to Aachen’s University Hospital. The average age of the infected patients was 65 years, and an average of four days had passed between experiencing their first symptoms such as fever, cough, and shortness of breath and later admission to the University Hospital. The occurrence of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is decisive for the course of the disease: 24 intubated patients with ARDS of varying severity were treated in the intensive care unit, 26 spontaneously breathing but oxygen-dependent infected patients without ARDS were treated in isolation on a normal ward. Compared to those without ARDS, patients with ARDS more frequently had a history of respiratory tract infections and were also more frequently overweight. There was no difference in the number of virus particles in the blood of the infected patients, but there were significant differences in the laboratory parameters: ARDS patients had elevated levels of leukocytes, interleukin-6, lactate dehydrogenase, creatine kinase and D-dimers. Patients without ARDS showed elevated inflammation values and had a fever for more than a week while also requiring oxygen during that time.
The German-language publication can be accessed here.
Appeal to the public: take the contact ban to heart, even in nice weather
In view of the beautiful weather forecast for the upcoming weekend, the police and regulatory authorities are appealing to the public to continue to observe the contact ban and the measures currently in place. This also applies to parks, woods, and public squares. Further, they are asking the public to refrain from driving to leisure areas nearby.
Student Advice Center Availability
During the Easter holidays, the Student Advice Center is available on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. via the hotline +49 241 80 94050. Requests for information are answered by e-mail on weekdays, and personal appointments can be made for meetings after the Easter holidays. Please contact studienberatung@rwth-aachen.de or use the appointment form on the website. A psychologist will be available from 9 a.m. to 12 noon for brief psychological counselling: +49 241 80 99424. If this should result in a need for further discussion, colleagues will be available after the consultation hours. Regular appointments for individual psychological counselling (by telephone) will only be made again for the period after the Easter holidays.
New overview of corona-related deadlines at RWTH
Even though the Robert Koch Institute no longer considers the Heinsberg district to be s particularly affected area, RWTH is asking employees from the Heinsberg district to continue working in home office. This regulation is valid until the end of the Easter holidays, i.e. until April 19, 2020. All regulations and deadlines of RWTH concerning the subject area Corona can be found with immediate effect at
https://www.rwth-aachen.de/cms/root/Die-RWTH/Aktuell/Pressemitteilungen/Maerz-2020/NRW-Landesregierung-verschiebt-Start-des/~gybjo/Aktuell-geltende-Fristen-und-Termine
All RWTH members are asked to check this page regularly. The deadlines are regularly updated by the University’s crisis management team.
Risk Area Netherlands: consequences for RWTH members
The Robert Koch Institute has declared the Netherlands a COVID19 risk area. This means that with immediate effect, RWTH has banned persons who have been in the Netherlands from entering University premises. Employees with residence in the Netherlands are obliged to work in home office, as far as this is possible. Alternative possibilities have to be discussed with their respective supervisors. RWTH also expressly points out the general ban on business trips to RKI risk areas, which applies even to short and undeclared business trips (e.g. to the Netherlands).
Tips for families against boredom in the current period
As the Easter holiday activities of RWTH are cancelled, a compilation with tips for families against boredom in the current period is listed for all parents and children on the website of the Family Services Center.
TU9 universities opt for digital formats
The TU9 universities have announced that they are sticking to their plans to stage the summer semester 2020 and associated teaching activities as far as possible as a regular and fully valid semester. The TU9 universities, of which RWTH is a member, are working hard to expand digital formats that can be used to implement teaching and examination courses, taking into account the fact that many classroom courses cannot be replaced by digital formats and that alternative examination and graduation options must be designed in a legally compliant manner. “Despite, or perhaps because of, the restrictions caused by the corona virus SARS-CoV-2, the summer semester must not be a lost semester for students,” said Prof. Wolfram Ressel, TU9 President and Rector of the University of Stuttgart. “We are facing up to the current challenges and are working hard and with the support of the federal and state governments on sustainable solutions. The crisis caused by the corona virus poses a major challenge to social, economic, health and university systems worldwide. We are aware of our responsibility and are actively working against a social and economic standstill”.