[PARTIALLY TRUE] Does Rutgers University bar unvaccinated students from attending online classes?

Screenshot of the Facebook post.

The Claim and Our Verdict

• The claim: A Facebook post published Sept. 8, 2021, claims that Rutgers University bars unvaccinated students from attending online classes.
• Fact-checking:
  • A news article published Sept. 7, 2021, by NJ.com, an online news media organization in New Jersey, claims that a student at Rutgers University had been barred from attending virtual classes because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19. The university’s spokesperson said the student’s case did not meet the exemption requirements, according to the article.
  • According to Rutgers University’s official website, there are two types of virtual classes:
    • Students registering for classes that are fully remote (synchronous/asynchronous) must provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination, though exemptions could be requested for medical or religious reasons.
    • Students enrolled in fully online degree-granting programs (typically defined as having no access to on-campus facilities), as well as individuals participating in fully online or off-campus Continuing Education programs will not need to provide proof of vaccination.
  • The Facebook post did not clearly state the above two situations. The post caption,  “bar unvaccinated students from virtual classes,” misleads the public to believe all students taking online courses must be vaccinated.
• Our ruling: Therefore, we rate the claim as PARTIALLY TRUE.

News Brief

A Facebook post published Sept. 8, 2021, claims that Rutgers University bars unvaccinated students from attending online classes. The post also included the link to an Insider Paper article published Sept. 7, 2021.

As of the issuance of this report, the post had been shared 17 times, and had received 6 comments and 104 likes and reactions.

Founded in 1766, Rutgers University (officially known as Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey) is a public research university based in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The school announced March 25, 2021, that proof of vaccination would be required for all students before returning to campus this fall. Rutgers is the first university in the United States to mandate vaccines for students.

Fact-checking

Google keyword searches found a news article published Sept. 7, 2021, by NJ.com, a New Jersey online news media organization. According to the article, a student named Logan Hollar said he was being stopped from taking virtual classes because he was not vaccinated against the coronavirus.

Screenshot of the news article published by NJ.com.

The article claims that Hollar “hasn’t taken, and doesn’t want, the COVID vaccine.” Though the university mandates vaccines for students before returning to campus, Hollar planned to have all virtual classes, which, he thought,  could exempt him from vaccine requirements. However, after he completed a required survey about the coronavirus vaccine, he was locked out of his Rutgers accounts in late August. Hollar called the university’s vaccine hotline, and a representative said he had to be vaccinated even if his classes were all remote.

According to the article, Rutgers spokeswoman Dory Devlin said registering for classes that are fully remote (synchronous/asynchronous) is not the same as being enrolled in a fully online degree-granting program.  Students who have not complied with the vaccine policy will receive an “action required” message when they attempt to log in, asking them to upload their vaccination information to the student immunization portal, Devlin said. She also said, “Via the same portal, students can apply for a medical or religious exemption to the vaccine policy. Students who submitted exemption requests after Aug. 1 should expect a two-to-four-week turnaround, during which time they will not have access to university systems. Once it is processed and verified, students are allowed access to university systems.” Devlin added that Rutgers continues to process waiver requests.

HKBU Factcheck Service team found the university’s immunization policy (updated April 13, 2021) under the COVID-19 Vaccine section of Rutgers’ official website. It sets out all students planning to attend in the fall 2021 semester must present evidence of COVID-19 immunization at least two weeks prior to coming onto campus for any reason, including but not limited to moving into a residence hall, attending campus classes, and/or entering any campus building. Evidence of immunization must be uploaded to the Rutgers Immunization Portal as soon as the series is completed and prior to arrival on campus.

In the policy document, the first two exemption conditions are listed below:

A: Students whose entire course of study is entirely web-based, a fully online degree program, and/or fully remote. To qualify, the student must have no physical presence on campus.

B: Individuals participating in fully online or off-campus Continuing Education Programs.

The COVID-19 Vaccine section of Rutgers’ official website also says, “students enrolled in fully online degree-granting programs (typically defined as having no access to on-campus facilities), as well as individuals participating fully online or off-campus Continuing Education programs, will not need to provide proof of vaccination. Registering for classes that are fully remote (synchronous/asynchronous) is not the same as being enrolled in a fully online degree-granting program. A full-remote virtual option will only be available for those enrolled in our degree-granting online program.” The website and immunization policy both say that students may request an exemption from the vaccination requirement for medical or religious reasons.

Therefore, the requirements listed on the university’s official website are consistent with the spokesperson’s response in the news article.

Screenshots of vaccination exemption requirements on the Rutgers’ official website.

In conclusion, according to Rutgers’ requirements, students who register fully remote classes still need to provide proof of vaccination, while those who participate in fully online degree-granting programs or fully online/off-campus Continuing Education programs do not have to. The Facebook post did not clearly state the above two situations. The post’s caption, “bar unvaccinated students from virtual classes,” misleads the public to believe all students taking online courses must be vaccinated.