Information on Spring 2022 Semester

Dear Students,

Per the message from the Office of the President from January 14, 2022, the first two weeks of our Spring Semester will be held online (with the exception of 4th, 5th, 6th Year School of Medicine classes and 2nd, 3rd, 4th Year School of Nursing classes). This decision aims to minimize mobility inside the campus and interpersonal contact, aiming to reduce the number of cases and rate of infection on our campus during the very busy Add/Drop period.

It is mandatory for students and faculty to wear masks during face-to-face classes in all classrooms at all times. Arrangements have been made to have only fresh air circulation in all classrooms and labs used for instruction. All classroom windows and doors are to be left open as much as possible. No food or drinks are allowed in the classrooms.

Conducting Classes both Face-to-Face and Online

The instruction mode for all courses (in person or online) will be available in KUSIS – Class Search. All courses except for the very few listed as online in KUSIS will be offered face-to-face and also online synchronously, taking into account the first two weeks of the semester. Lectures will be recorded based on the protocol determined by IT, for students who cannot participate synchronously and also in order to give access to all lecture recordings to support subsequent review and study by students.

It is recommended that students bring their own electronic devices to face-to-face sessions for potential online components of face-to-face courses. In situations where this is not possible, the student should inform the instructor. For online courses, in cases where the student does not have an electronic device, computer labs will be available for use.

All students who attend the classes face-to-face or online are strongly encouraged to participate in the sessions on the relevant day and time as scheduled, with active participation in various learning activities so that they can get the most benefit from the education and training activities offered. Courses are to be offered online synchronously and recorded for students to access later for subsequent review and study as well as for some students who cannot participate synchronously. Teaching assistants (TAs) can attend classes and support communication with online students. We would like to remind you that if additional support is needed outside the scheduled class time, support can always be obtained during instructor office hours, from the TA, if any, and also from KOLT.

Course Schedules

All Courses are to be offered for a total of 2×70 minutes on Monday-Wednesdays or Tuesday-Thursdays between 08:30 and 18:40. There are 7 time slots each day. PS/DS/LAB sessions are scheduled for 70 minutes between 19:00-20:10 on Monday through Thursday or are  scheduled on Fridays throughout the day. There will be a 20 minute-break at the end of each lecture.

ELC courses are to be offered 80% face-to-face and 20% online in 50-minute sessions followed by a 10-minute break. ELC students are to be informed in more detail.

Assignments and Examinations

Unless the Ministry of Health, the Higher Education Council (YÖK), other respective government bodies, or Koç University Health officials recommend otherwise, all examinations (midterm(s) and final) for face-to-face and online courses are to be held face-to-face on campus. Faculty members may also consider using other assessments including take-home exams/assignments, online quizzes, online assignments, online discussions, reports, presentations, etc. to assess student learning.

Exchange students who cannot participate in face-to-face courses should inform the Office of International Programs by February 2nd at the latest. All other online examination requests must be made to the University Executive Council in a timely manner, taking into account exam dates as well as the Council’s meeting dates available in the academic calendar.

Grading

As of Spring 2022 Semester, we return  to regular letter grading for courses and students no longer have the option to receive ‘S/U’ (Satisfactory-Unsatisfactory) grades moving forward, unless otherwise noted.

Useful Links:

Academic Calendar
IT Educational Technologies
Information Technologies
Office of Learning and Teaching (KOLT)

Wishing you all a healthy and successful Spring Semester,

Registrar’s & Student Affairs Directorate