Coronavirus (COVID-19) Frequents Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

• Will the Belanich Engineering Center (BEC) remain open?
  In light of the Governor’s statewide “stay at home” declaration, BEC is closed except for a crew of designated staff who are essential to keep operations running. Most SMSE staff and administrators are working from home.  The Dean’s office will remain open to help support you through this unique situation. Someone from the dean office will be in Monday - Friday 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m., but most communication will take place electronically.
• How can I complete this semester without in-person class meetings?

  Faculty will teach both synchronously (“in real time”) and asynchronously. Synchronous offerings means the lectures will occur at the same time as the regularly-scheduled class meetings. Asynchronous classes will include lectures posted online, and open sessions (e.g. group office hours) at the time the class was scheduled. We recognize that students may be spread across a broad range of time zones, thus, faculty willrecord class sessions with Zoom, which will allow students to view these sessions at a later time. Check with your instructor for details about how they will conduct their classes.

  Faculty are reevaluating the most effective ways to provide students with these experiences. Because each course is unique, your instructor will tell how the classes will proceed once classes resume.

• How do I use Zoom Pro for remote classes?
  Most SMSE (and USD) classes will be taught using Zoom Pro. It is available for desktops, laptops, tablets, and phones.  You should be receiving additional emails regarding Zoom. Please get yourself acquainted as soon as possible with how to use the Zoom videos/audio conferencing tool. 
• What do I do if I have a mentored research project?
  In accordance with the statewide “stay at home” declaration, students are not allowed to come to campus. Because of this restriction, students working on a mentored research project will have to coordinate directly with their mentor to see if it is possible to complete the research work.
• Will academic advising still be available the rest of the spring 2020 semester?
  Faculty will continue to provide academic advising to their students using email and Zoom. As of now, students will be able to register for the fall 2020 semester beginning April 9, 2020. Samantha Przywitowski (sam@sandiego.edu) is continuing to work with students. She is developing a series of advising videos to help all students. Video appointments with Sam can be made through https://calendly.com/sam-usd.
• How will my performance be measured with online classes?
  Faculty will provide students with precise and concrete expectations for your courses.
• Will the Engineering and Computing Showcase be cancelled?
  In light of recommendations to limit meetings with large numbers of people, and because students are returning home, the Spring 2020 Engineering and Computing Showcase has been cancelled.
• What should I do if I need to drop a class, or do other things that require signatures?

  The usual administrative processes still apply. You can find most of the forms you need on the registrar’s pages: https://www.sandiego.edu/registrar/forms.php. Complete them, then use your phone to scan the completed form and send it to OneStop, Samantha Przywitowski (sam@sandiego.edu),Dr. Olson (r_olson@sandiego.edu) or whomever would normally receive the form.

• How do I get the software I need for my classes?
  ITS has developed a server solution for most of our software applications that is in testing with faculty right now. We are providing these solutions to help our students succeed in their classes.  Your instructors will share this with you when classes resume the week of March 23rd.

If you have additional questions specifically related to USD's Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering that have not been answered on this FAQ page, please email us at usdengr@sandiego.edu.

For all information for the University of San Diego community related to the coronavirus outbreak, please visit USD's COVID-19 website.

We are in this together!