It is central for the universities that university operations can take place in the fall semester of 2021/2022 under largely normal conditions and with the quality expected on all sides. However, this can only be expected if as many university employees as possible are vaccinated against Covid-19. The higher the vaccination rate among university students and staff, the shorter and easier the road back to normality.
It is the universities' top priority to avoid another complete shutdown. All the universities have shown that they can ensure the health of students and employees with the protection concepts they have developed and implemented. However, this does not change the fact that a deterioration of the epidemiological situation overall cannot be ruled out. Although attendance at courses is unlikely to have been a driver of infections, further measures may also prove necessary in higher education. In such a situation, the use of the Covid 19 certificate for higher education institutions could be a helpful and useful addition to their protection concepts if necessary. From the point of view of the swissuniversities Board, a certificate requirement at universities, especially for undergraduate teaching, will only be permissible under the condition of an appropriate legal basis. It therefore suggests that such a legal basis be created at the federal level, which would allow universities, if necessary, as an extreme measure, to provide for a certificate obligation specifically and for precisely circumscribed activities.
For extracurricular activities such as restaurants or fitness, the swissuniversities Board assumes that the same rules apply as for off-campus offerings.