University Travel Restrictions

• The university has banned university-approved travel for faculty, staff and students to CDC Level 3 countries and are otherwise following CDC and State Department guidelines. Requests for university-approved travel to Level 2 countries is discouraged and will require case-by-case approval. Exceptions for faculty travel will require a recommendation from the Dean and approval from the Provost. ​Deans should send their recommendations concerning exceptions to Kalpen Trivedi, associate provost for international programs, at ktrivedi@umass.edu. 

• All university-organized international trips for student groups are canceled until further notice.

• UMass Amherst is now requiring any student, faculty or staff member returning from a CDC Level 3 country to self-quarantine for 14 days and remain symptom-free before returning to campus. The CDC is also asking travelers returning from Level 2 countries to practice social distancing for 14 days and to monitor their health for potential symptoms of COVID-19.

Study Abroad

Study-abroad and exchange programs in China, South Korea, and all 26 European member nations of the Schengen Treaty Area have been suspended until further notice. Students enrolled in programs outside of these countries have been urged very strongly to return to the U.S. as soon as practical. The International Programs Office continues to monitor state and federal guidance on the spread of COVID-19 worldwide and will assist all students to minimize academic disruption to their semester.

UMass Amherst is now requiring any student, faculty or staff member returning from a country designated by the CDC at alert level 3 to self-quarantine for 14 days and remain symptom-free before returning to campus. This now includes all 26 European member nations of the Schengen Treaty Area. The CDC is also asking travelers returning from Level 2 countries to practice social distancing for 14 days and to monitor their health for potential symptoms of COVID-19.

Information for students studying abroad outside of China, South Korea, Italy, Japan, and the Schengen Area

The situation in all countries is very fluid and many universities or study-abroad programs have already cancelled or suspended their operations. Many countries are placing restrictions on travel, and airlines are reducing routes and capacity.

In cases where your program is cancelled, we ask you to return to the U.S. as soon as practical, and that you follow the instructions provided by your study-abroad program or host university. In addition, please also complete the Google Form found here.

• You must be logged in to your UMass Google account to access the form.
• Complete this form even if you have already emailed us this information.
• Complete this form even if you have already returned home.
• Non-UMass students: email your travel details to coronavirus-ipo@umass.edu.

In destinations where programs/universities may still be operating (e.g. New Zealand, Australia, Ireland, UK, Ghana, Israel, Latin America), we nonetheless recommend very strongly that you make arrangements as soon as practical to return to the U.S. or your place of permanent residence. There is a real concern that given that the level of community transmission may rise rapidly in your destination or that travel restrictions or other guidance may be implemented by your host country or the U.S. with very little notice, which would make future return more problematic. If, however, return is difficult, or if you determine that it is in your best interests to complete your semester abroad, you should note that circumstances may make it difficult for UMass to assist you, although we will try our best. In all cases, we will work towards mitigating any academic disruption to the best of our abilities, whether or not your local program or university has put in place any arrangements for remote completion of your semester.

If you decide to leave your program voluntarily, please complete this Google Form with your return flight itinerary, following the same instructions for completing the form as above.

If you encounter difficulty booking return travel, we recommend you book with an U.S.-based carrier (e.g. United, Delta, American), instead of a local carrier, as U.S.-based carriers are more likely to continue service, albeit at reduced capacity  We also recommend that you check with local university or program staff or contact U.S. Embassy’s U.S. Citizen Services to seek their up to date advice on local travel or movement restrictions.

If you decide to remain in place for now, please complete this Google Form to update us on your current location. You must complete this form even if you have submitted this information on your UMass Abroad application. 

• Non-UMass students: email your location details to coronavirus-ipo@umass.edu.

As we stated in our last message, we will be sharing this and all future updates with your families (for those students who have provided us with e-mails) but please also share/forward this and future communications to anyone who you feel is appropriate.  All information and updates will also be shared to the UMass Coronavirus response website.

If you have additional questions or concerns not answered by this website, you may send them coronavirus-ipo@umass.edu and we will try to provide answers as quickly as we can. Please continue to keep in mind that we are receiving an overwhelming number of questions, and our responses to complex or individual questions will take some time to resolve.

Updated May 20, 2020