Information about the Coronavirus (COVID-19)

In line with the current infection situation, and guidelines from the authorities, we choose to start the semester with open campuses, but only digital teaching.

This is in accordance with BI's own decision taken on 8 December 2020 to only have digital teaching in the whole of January 2021.  

We encourage our students to postpone any travels back to their student destinations if possible.

Employees and students must comply with the current infection prevention guidelines and the regulations from national and local authorities. Working from home is the main rule in January.

Teaching will follow the same model as this semester, with 2/3 scheduled digital classes (stream or zoom) and 1/3 digital delivery (to be taken independent of time and place). Information about teaching arrangements for individual subjects will be published in the course rooms on itslearning. Remember to pay attention to both national and local course rooms.

If the infection situation allows it, we hope to switch to a combination of physical teaching on campus (2/3) and digital independent modules (1/3) from February. Information on a possible change from digital to physical teaching will be given mid-January.

Updated 12 January 2021

From 1 August there are 120 confirmed cases of COVID-19 at BI Norwegian Business School.

ONGOING MEASURES AT OUR CAMPUS

02.01.21 Digital teaching in January on all campuses. In January, all teaching will go digital but the campuses will still be open. We encourage you to delay any travels back to your student destination if this is possible. Pay attention to itslearning for details.

PREVIOUS MEASURES AT OUR CAMPUS

28.10.20 Campus Oslo: Only digital lectures from Friday 30 October. Following new advice and recommendations from Oslo Municipality and the government, all teaching will go digital throughout the semester from and including Friday 30 October. Campus will still be open to students even though teaching takes place online. It is now compulsory to use face masks when you move around the building.

28.10.20 Campus Bergen: Prolongs digital teaching throughout the semester. Following new advice and recommendations from Bergen Municipality and the government, all teaching will go digital throughout the semester. Campus will still be open to students even though teaching takes place online. It is now compulsory to use face masks when you move around in the building.

22.11.20 Campus Oslo: An infected student was on campus Tuesday 17 and Wednesday 18 November. 4 students are quarantined. The student used group room B5-115 and sat in the area outside the group rooms in CU1.

02.11.20 Campus Oslo: A student was in the study areas at the library for a few hours on Monday 2 November. The student got symptoms Monday night. Confirmed infected with Covid-19 on Friday 6 November. Those who sat nearby in the study areas have been contacted and quarantined.

26.10.20 Campus Oslo: A student from Bachelor in International Management 1st year was confirmed with COVID-19 infection Sunday 25 October. The student attended a lecture (Spå 29001 Business communication: culture and ethics in Finn Øien 08:00-09:45) on Wednesday October 21 and had already light symptoms at this time. 

25.10.20 Campus Oslo: A bachelor student was confirmed with COVID-19 infection Saturday 24 October. The student attended lecture Tuesday 20 October in ELE 3776 Matematisk analyse in A1-030 from 15:00-16:45 and Wednesday 21 October in SØK 3520 Mikroøkonomi in A1-040 from 15:00-16:45. All students that potentially attended these lectures have been informed and asked to stay at home and follow online lectures next week (week 44).

25.10.20 Campus Bergen: Only digital teaching in week 44. The measure lasts until Friday 30.10.20. This is due to an increasing number of cases of Covid-19 among BI students the last few days. Several of the infected students have been present in lectures and on campus.

25.10.20 Campus Oslo: PhD candidate was confirmed with Covid-19 infection Friday 23 October. The candidate attended lecture Tuesday 20.10 in DRE 4010 Advanced Microeconomics in B2-065 and Thursday 22.10 in DRE 7008 Advanced Statistics in C2-090. Affected PhD candidates and faculty having to prepare for online distribution have been informed.

23.10.20 Campus Bergen: Only digital teaching for several first-year bachelor programmes in week 44. One student has been confirmed infected with COVID-19. The infected student attended the lecture in BØK 3422 Bedriftsøkonomisk analyse Tuesday 20 October and tested positive Thursday 22 October.

23.10.20 Campus Oslo: MSc in Finance student was confirmed with COVID-19 infection Thursday 22 October. The student attended the lecture in GRA 6542 Corporate Governance Monday 19.10 15:00-16:45 in auditorium C2-080 and GRA 6559 Fintech Wednesday 21.10 13:00-14:45 in auditorium C2-005. All students that attended these lectures have been asked to stay at home and follow all teaching online until Monday 2 November.

15.10.20 Campus Oslo: MSc in Business student was confirmed with COVID-19 infection Thursday 15 October. The student attended a lecture in GRA 6534 Investments Tuesday 13.10 10:00-11:45 in auditorium C2-080. In order to reduce the risk of further infections all students that attended this lecture have been asked to stay at home and follow all teaching online until Monday 26 October.  

11.10.20 Campus Oslo: Student from Bachelor in business (SiVILØKONOM) 2nd year confirmed infected with COVID-19 Saturday 10 October. The student was last on campus attending the lecture in BØK 3532 Finansregnskap og regnskapsanalyse i auditorium C1-010 from 10:00-11:45 on Wednesday October 7. The students attending this class have been asked not to come to campus and follow all teaching online in week 42 (12-16 October).

10.10.20 Campus Bergen: Only digital teaching for Bachelor in retail management 2nd year in week 42. Three students from campus Bergen have been confirmed infected with COVID-19 this week. One of the infected students attended the lecture in VHL 3559 Økonomistyring og lean i Monday 5 october from 08:00-09:45.

21.09.20 Campus Oslo: An MSc in Business student has been confirmed with COVID-19 infection. The student was last on campus on Thursday 19 September attending a lecture in GRA 6534 Investments 17:00-18:45 in auditorium C1-060. All students that potentially attended this lecture have been informed and asked to stay at home and follow online lectures this week (week 39).

18.09.20: A student attending HIS 3410 Bedriften OH3 Tuesday 15.09 17:00-18:45 in C1-010 has been infected with COVID-19. All students that potentially attended this lecture have been informed and asked to stay at home and follow online lectures next week (week 39)

16.09.20: One student at campus Trondheim was confirmed infected on Tuesday 15 September, after last visiting campus on 8 September. A second student tested positive on Wednesday 16 September, but did not visit campus after first experiencing symptoms. Eight fellow students have been quarantined.

08.09.20: Only digital teaching at BI - campus Bergen after new infection control measures. The measure lasts until Wednesday 23.09.20. 

14.09.20: All students who attended a lecture in the master course GRA 6038 Ethics and Sustainability in Organizations on Tuesday 8 September from 10:00-11:45 are asked to follow online teaching in week 38.
- applies to a group of 30 students from 1st year MSc in Business, Leadership and Change and 1st year MSc Leadership and Organizational Psychology

13.09.20: Students who attended lectures in two courses at campus Oslo have been asked to follow online teaching in week 38 after an infected student participated in class in week 37. The two lectures were:
- SPÅ 2901 Business communication: culture and ethics in the Finn Øien auditorium on Wednesday 9 September between 08:00-09:45
- HIS 3410 Bedriften in auditorium C1 000 on Thursday 10 September between 08:00-09:45

06.09.20: Bachelor in Økonomi og administrasjon 1st year at campus Oslo moves to online teaching only in week 37.
- A student in the programme was confirmed infected on Saturday 5 September.
- The student was attending classes in week 35 and parts of week 36.
- To avoid further spread of infection, all teaching will be moved online in week 37.

31.08.20: Only online teaching for Bachelor in Business Law and Economics and Bachelor in Real Estate, Law and Economics 1st year in week 36.
- Four students from Bachelor in Business Law were confirmed infected with COVID-19 in week 36.
- Due to a lot of coincidental teaching between the two programmes, all teaching for both programmes will be moved online in week 36.

Read more about BI's guidelines for infection prevention.

Please make sure you apply with our guidelines to prevent transmission (pdf). Main precautions:

• Stay at home if you are sick. 
• Keep good hand hygiene and cough etiquette. 
• Reduce contact with others and keep a minimum of one meter to others. 
• Avoid public transportation in rush hour if possible.

If a student or employee is infected, we kindly ask the person to register on bi.edu. In some cases, BI can also be notified directly by the local health authorities.

BI considers measures especially in those cases where the person in question has been present in teaching from 48 hours before showing symptoms. The following division of responsibilities applies:

Municipality:

• Should a student or employee test positive for COVID-19, this may mean that many or all those present in e.g. lecture will be quarantined by the local health authorities.
• It is the local health authorities (not BI) who coordinates the detection of infection around proven cases, and who assesses whether an entire class / group must be quarantined or not.
• BI's infection control measures lays the foundation and the experience so far is that in most cases whole classes / groups are not quarantined, but those who have been closest to the person in question.
• In some cases, it is unclear who has been sitting next to you, but here compliance with distance and infection control measures will result in a low probability of the spread of infection.
• If you are not contacted by the local health authorities, you are not defined as close contact or quarantined. 

In principle, it is the diagnosing doctor (often a general practitioner, emergency doctor or hospital doctor) who has a duty to carry out infection detection (cf. section 3-6). As a rule, it is the local health authorities who succeed to and coordinates the detection of infections around proven cases. 

BI: 

• Have you been present in e.g. lecture where a person was proven infected, there will still be a probability that you are infected, even if you are not defined as close contact by the local health authorities. This probability is normally considered low. 
• In each individual case, BI will assess the risk of the spread of infection and may decide that the affected class / group must conduct further examinations / teaching digitally over the next 10 days, even if the local health authorities does not impose quarantine.
• As a lecturer, you can still go to work as long as it is in line with BI's infection control measures and you are not quarantined by the local health authorities.
• BI can strongly encourage you as a student not to attend campus but cannot impose this on you. BI will not map close contacts, impose quarantine, or provide information about where the person was sitting. 

Can I go to work / lecture? 

It is referred to in the point above that there is a low probability of infection if you have not been contacted and quarantined by the local health authorities. If you have not been informed of anything else, you can show up physically in teaching, provided that the other infection control measures are complied with.

In those cases where BI decides on digital teaching for classes / groups, this is done for "precautionary" reasons. This means that there is a low probability that you are infected, but you must clarify with the employer etc. whether it is desirable that you show up physically.

The same applies to motility elsewhere in society. For BI's campus, BI's advice and recommendations apply. In addition to this, the individual must also follow the advice from the local health authorities at any given time.

At all our campuses, it is now mandatory to use face masks for both students and staff when they move around in the building. On campus Bergen and campus Oslo it was mandatory from Friday 30 October. On campus Trondheim and campus Stavanger it was mandatory from Thursday 19 November. 

You do not need to wear a face mask when seated, provided you are able to maintain a distance of at least 1 meter from those around you. Masks can be picked up at the reception/InfoHub on all campuses. For a face mask to be effective it is important to use it correctly. See more information on NIPH's webpage.

BI’s guidelines for infection prevention and the infection control measures are based on the advice from the health authorities and FHI.

As a BI student you can make an appointment to be tested for COVID-19 by SiO’s health services. Please find more information on how to book an appointment and the testing procedures here.

• Follow the guidelines from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI)
  The Norwegian health authorities will follow up persons with confirmed COVID-19 infections. If you have been in close contact with an infected person, you must self-quarantine at home for 14 days. Close contact means less than two meters from an infected person for more than 15 minutes, or direct physical contact.
• Inform BI
  We would like you to inform us if you experience symptoms of the coronavirus. Use the form below to register. BI will follow up affected students and employees.

• Students: register here

• Employees: register here

• Register your symptoms with FHI to help map the outbreak
  In order to map infections, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI) asks people with symptoms of the corona-virus to register. This service is only to map infections. You will not be contacted by the medical services, nor will FHI inform people you may have been in contact with. Follow the guidelines form FHI if you believe you may be infected.

BI has has made the difficult decision to cancel outgoing and incoming exchange outside Europe spring 2021, in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. The challenges related to obtaining a visa, travel restrictions and the general safety of the students, have been important factors in this decision. Note that the cancellation does not apply to double degree or QTEM students. Read more

Please find relevant information for your entry to Norway here. 

In case you need to do a travel quarantine, it is your responsibility to check with your housing provider if you are able to stay there during your quarantine or if you need to check in to a quarantine hotel.

You will always find updated information about the coronavirus at the websites of The Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NHI). Including information about the following:

• Facts about the virus
• How to prevent infection
• What to do if you think you may be infected
• Information about quarantine and isolation

Please remember that the local student welfare organisations offer medical services:

Campus Oslo : sio.no
Campus Bergen: sammen.no
Campus Stavanger: studentensbeste.no
Campus Trondheim: sit.no

Student counselling at BI is available by Skype, FaceTime or telephone. Send an email to counselling@bi.no or to The University Chaplain at studentprest@bi.no to make an appointment.

SiO also offers support to students:
https://sio.no/en/health-services/someone-to-talk-to

We understand that you as students are passionate about the best possible learning outcome. We are as well. Therefore, this autumn's teaching and learning activities are planned based on this premise.

Like all other universities and colleges, BI is in the initial phase regarding a somewhat different teaching setup due to the pandemic. In a short time, BI has facilitated a combination of physical and digital teaching. Efforts are now being made to increase the capacity for streaming and make the necessary adjustments and adaptations so that the teaching in the future will be as good as possible.

The combination of physical and digital lectures will ensure that we deliver a flexible product of high quality to all our students. We work as fast as we can to use the digital teaching methods that are best suited for the course / program you take.

The learning objectives will remain the same even if the delivery is somewhat different than before. The assumption that this is a financial saving for BI and other universities and colleges is incorrect. It is rather the opposite. Like the rest of the sector, we have had to invest significant sums, both in terms of new infrastructure and additional work for our employees.

Let there be no doubt that BI wants to facilitate campus-based teaching. Despite this, we must meet the requirements of keeping at least 1-meter distance. We have therefore had to reduce the capacity of our teaching rooms in line with the government's strict measures to prevent spread of infection.

Finally, we would like to remind you that BI Norwegian Business School is a self-owned foundation with the purpose of conducting education and research. All value creation at BI is used to strengthen the business, which means that a possible profit provides an opportunity for more research and development of studies.

The changed teaching offer does not entitle to a refund of tuition fees or other costs.

Inquiries are asked to be directed to class contacts and representatives in BISO so they can take the matter further to BI through the right channels.