Uni Queensland campus only open to staff who absolutely have to be there   

Everybody else is required to work from home, which is not always easy. People reported problems with conferencing this week as ZOOM was overwhelmed.

Uni Canberra goes to virtual teaching until end May

Campus functions that will continue include child-care, Uni Canberra Hospital, and some “research-related facilities.”  Student services are on-line.

Charles Sturt U students not locked-in on fees

Today is census date, meaning students have to confirm enrolment and HECS liability, before on-line teaching completely replaces on-campus courses after break, on April 14.

However, students will be able to apply for approved withdrawal throughout first session. If this is approved they can apply for a HECS refund.

Census date delayed at RMIT

Census date for HE students is now a month later, April 30. However, course changes are due by Tuesday. “This date is critical for us to appropriately support our students to succeed with their studies, and we simply can’t compromise on that.”

James Cook U med students on COVID-19 duty

Some 366 fifth and sixth year students are deployed to regional, rural and remote hospitals and clinics in Queensland, helping with regular healthcare provision by assessing and triaging patients. “Senior healthcare students are smart and well educated, and are a logical and available resource for primary care at this time,” GP training director Peta-Ann Teague says.

Not all agree. Last week Uni Adelaide cancelled med student placements, while Flinders U continued (CMM March 19).

Data crunches COVID

The nation’s giant data crunchers are making space for COVID-19 researchers. The Pawsey Supercomputing Centre in Perth and the National Computational Infrastructure (Canberra) are providing “streamlined, prioritised and expedited access.”

NCI’s new supercomputer is ten-times faster than its predecessor. Pawsey’s Cloud (officially opening Wednesday) is “being immediately re-prioritised” to support virus researchers.