The first week of the Fall 2020 semester is unlike any other. As campus operations have changed greatly due to COVID-19, here are some of the things you should know to make the most out of the start of the new school year.
Academic Resources | Advising | Class Registration | COVID-19 Safety and Testing | Dining Services and Food | Financial Aid | Health and Wellness | Parking and Transportation | Pegasus Palooza | Student Union | Technology | Textbooks | UCF Mobile App |
Academic Resources
Whether you have questions about webcourses or proctored exams, students taking online courses can find help and support through the Keep Learning site.
The Student Academic Resource Center is available to help you succeed academically. Peer tutors, supplemental-instruction leaders and academic coaches are available to assist you online via Zoom. Limited in-person services for select classes will also be offered at the main and downtown campuses.
All Knight Study is an on-campus resource that provides students a comfortable place to study and access to free printing, Scantrons and computers.
AKS’s main campus locations at Knights Plaza and Ferrell Commons will reopen Monday, Aug. 24. Throughout the semester it will be open seven days a week with reduced hours to allow for overnight sanitation. Please note these hours may be adjusted as needed:
- Monday through Thursday: 7 a.m. to 2 a.m.
- Friday: 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Saturday: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Sunday: 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.
Group study rooms are closed and public-use computers in these facilities will be reduced to 50 percent capacity to encourage physical distancing, with staff sanitizing workstations once an hour as well as having sanitizing wipes available for students.
You can use your UCF ID to redeem one free Scantron per day at the All Knight Study locations or at the SG information desk in Room 214 of the Student Union. Free green books are also available, but you are limited to three per semester.
The John C. Hitt Library, as well as branch libraries at UCF Downtown and Rosen College of Hospitality Management, reopen Aug. 24, with reduced hours to accommodate staggered or remote work schedules. Seating has been reduced to support physical distancing, but students can still access books, desktop computers, and printers and rent technology from the libraries. For more information on UCF Libraries operations and policies for fall, visit their website.
Advising
The Knights Major Exploration and Transition Center is available to assist students who have not declared or are exploring majors. The center will provide services remotely through this semester. Office hours are Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Contact the office via email at kmetc@ucf.edu.
For other advising appointments check your college’s website for specific advising office hours, availability and contact information.
Class Registration
Using myUCF, you can change your schedule during the first week — just keep deadlines in mind. The drop/swap and add deadlines fall on the same date this year, Friday, Aug. 28.
COVID-19 Safety and Testing
Every student, faculty and staff member must complete the COVID self-checker prior to each daily visit to campus. This self-assessment can be submitted online or through the UCF Mobile app. Students can find instructions on how to complete the self-checker here and employees can find information here.
In accordance with UCF’s COVID-19 Return to Campus Policy, all UCF students and employees on campus must wear face coverings while indoors and outdoors. The only exception is when individuals are working out outdoors.
Each student, faculty and staff member at UCF can receive one free reusable, cloth face covering. These face coverings can be at various distribution sites on main, Rosen and UCF Downtown campuses. They may also be picked up through nine vending machines across the campuses.
Here are some steps you can take if you encounter someone on campus who is not wearing a face covering.
To find more information and the latest COVID-19 updates for the UCF community, visit ucf.edu/coronavirus. For information specific to returning to campus, visit ucf.edu/returning-to-ucf
COVID-19 testing is available in Garage A of UCF’s main campus. The testing is in partnership with Aventus BioLabs, which is also offering COVID-19 antibody testing at the main campus testing location. Anyone who tests positive for the coronavirus should contact the UCF COVID Line at 407-823-2509.
Dining Services and Food
To see which dining options are open on main campus and UCF Downtown, visit the What’s Open page.
With consideration to the impact of COVID-19, there is no deadline to enroll in a meal plan for Fall 2020. However, students should consider signing up for a plan at their earliest convenience to make the most out of it.
UCF Dining Services has increased safety and cleaning proceeds throughout the dining halls and restaurants they manage. Grab-and-go and take-out meals are encouraged along with using outdoor spaces to eat, but students will be able to utilize some indoor, physically distanced seating eating options. Students can also take advantage of mobile ordering for any UCF Dining establishment through the Grubhub app.
Students in need can still access free groceries from Knights Pantry, which is located in Ferrell Commons on main campus, by signing up online for curbside pickup Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Financial Aid
Students who are not anticipated to receive financial aid for Fall 2020 must meet the tuition payment deadline of Sept. 1. Students who are anticipated to receive financial aid (awards have either been distributed already or are listed as pending in myUCF) for Fall 2020 have a deferred deadline for tuition of Friday, Oct. 30.
Before reaching out to the Office of Student Financial Assistance, you should check your email and myUCF account and complete any items on your to-do list. If you have successfully completed the financial aid process, including confirmation of academic activity for each of your courses during the first week, you can expect your approved aid to be disbursed during the second week of classes.
For information on financial aid, read our guide here. The financial aid help videos cover topics such as the types of financial aid, how to fill out the FAFSA, understanding your to-do list and more, which can help answer many questions without speaking to someone directly.
You can also find answers to questions related to COVID-19’s impact on financial aid here.
UCF’s Office of Student Financial Assistance is offering limited in-person and virtual meetings. To schedule an appointment, contact them at finaid@ucf.edu or call 407-823-2827
Schedule a virtual appointment with a financial-assistance counselor to discuss UCF’s financial aid application process or your financial aid status. Due to limited availability, appointments should be reserved for information not accessible through myUCF or the financial aid website. Appointments are available for booking up to two weeks in advance.
Health and Wellness
Student Health Services currently provides telehealth and limited direct, in-person appointments for care at the Health Center on main campus. To schedule an appointment call 407-823-2701. Telehealth appointments are also available at the UCF Downtown (407-823-2701) and College of Medicine (407-266-1075) clinics.
Fall 2020 Hours of Operation (effective Aug. 22):
- Main campus health center: Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Telehealth and direct patient care, with final hour designated for telehealth only); Saturday 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. (Nurse triage and telehealth only)
- UCF Downtown UnionWest clinic: Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Telehealth only)
- College of Medicine clinic: Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Telehealth only)
The pharmacy is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. You can pick up prescriptions and over-the-counter items in person or schedule for delivery. For more information, about the pharmacy and other Student Health Services, click here.
The UCF Recreation and Wellness Center and RWC @ Downtown will reopen for students starting Aug. 21 with modified hours, a new reservation system and updated safety guidelines, which you can learn more about here. Please note, the RWC will have a maximum capacity of 100 users per hour. Students can make reservations no more than 24 hours in advance up to one hour prior to their visit. Students are limited to one reservation per day and can work out for one hour.
For students who would like to access RWC’s services from home throughout the semester, the department will provide livestream fitness classes on Instagram and on Zoom, pre-recorded home workouts, esports leagues, sports trivia events and more through RWC+’s fully online programming.
Parking and Transportation
Important parking and transportation information can be found in the parking and transportation guide.
Some significant changes to note for Fall 2020 are:
- With consideration to the impact of the pandemic, parking permits that are set to expire Aug. 31, will be honored through Dec. 31 at no cost. If you do not have a valid permit and are planning to park on campus, please purchase a one-semester or multi-semester permit from Parking and Transportation Services. If you are not planning to be on campus frequently, you can also purchase virtual daily permits.
- Please note that standing room has been suspended on all shuttles and seating capacity has been reduced by 20 percent to help promote physical distancing. As UCF is requiring students, faculty and staff to wear face coverings on campus, the same requirement applies while on shuttles. To increase safety, riders must show drivers their valid UCF ID prior to boarding UCF shuttles. To learn about the safety precautions that will be used to help promote a healthier environment for UCF shuttle riders, click here.
- Spin e-scooters will not be available on campus this fall due to safety concerns.
Pegasus Palooza
This year’s week-long celebration welcomes students to the fall semester with a mix of virtual and physically distant in-person events.
It all begins Aug. 23 at 8 p.m, during The Knighting, an in-person gathering on Memory Mall that will include speakers and entertainment (RSVP here). On Aug. 28, a drive-in Movie Knight featuring Pixar’s Onward will take place near the Bounce House Stadium 8:30–10 p.m (Sstudents with vehicles can RSVP here and those without can RSVP here.) Students will be required to follow UCF’s COVID-19 protocols and temporary campus events policy during these and any other in-person events.
Opening Knight offers students a chance to virtually discover student organizations and meet some of their members on Aug. 23 from 4 to 7 p.m. through KnightConnect. Comedy Knight, featuring 2019 Bring the Funny finalist Ali Siddiq and radio personality Marcus Wiley, will take place Aug. 27 at 8 p.m. on Zoom.
For more information and the full schedule, visit palooza.sdes.ucf.edu.
Student Union
On Aug. 8, UCF’s newly renovated Student Union — the Heart of Campus — reopened, with regular operating hours resuming Aug. 21. The Union now features expanded dining options, including a full-service Starbucks on the second floor with additional space and seating.
Technology
If you’re having technical issues or don’t own a desktop computer, you can use public ones at the John C. Hitt Library. You can also rent MacBooks and Dell laptops from UCF Libraries.
Current students can also access free software — such as Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel and more — on any computer through UCF Apps. Connect to UCF Apps through a web browser or visit your mobile device’s app store to download the free Citrix Receiver app. For more information on how to install and use UCF Apps click here.
Textbooks
To find out how to save money on textbooks, read our guide here. Some options include using e-books, textbook lending and taking advantage of the on-campus bookstore’s price-matching offer. You can also check Facebook groups, such as “Class of 2023,” to find books other students are selling.
UCF Mobile App
The UCF Mobile app is one of the best resources for support. Here you can quickly and easily access your myUCF account, online courses, Knights email, an event calendar, emergency alerts and more. The app also helps you get around with a module that tracks the shuttles in real time and another with an interactive campus map.
An important new feature on the UCF Mobile app is the COVID Self-Checker, which every student, faculty and staff must complete prior to each daily visit to campus.
UCF Downtown and Rosen College of Hospitality Management students can also select their respective campuses for their app experience to get information, services and details specific to their locations.
