A survey by UKrant shows that nearly half of students at the UG are in favour of the university making the corona pass a requirement.
(See the end of the article for a selection of responses)
49.8 percent of students polled think a corona pass to enter buildings is a good idea. Over one in three students (37.7 percent) are against the use of the CoronaCheck app at the university, for various reasons, while nearly 13 percent have no opinion or don’t care.
The survey was held on Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning at the Zernike campus and the city centre. UKrant approached over two hundred Dutch and international students.
The outgoing government is currently looking into making a QR code mandatory in higher and vocational education. It’s already mandatory in the hospitality business and sports facilities. It’s possible the government will make a decision by the end of the week.
Safer
Proponents of the CoronaCheck app at the university point out that the number of infections has risen exponentially over the past few weeks. They think that it will encourage more people to get vaccinated.
‘I think it’s safer if people are vaccinated. If we want the numbers to go down, people need to get vaccinated. I think this would encourage people to do so’, one student says.
In favour: The university should ensure everyone’s safety
Another student said: ‘Everything that could help increase vaccinations is a good thing.’ A third student said: ‘In large institutes like these, with so many people, the university should ensure everyone’s safety.’
Many of the proponents are also sick of the way the pandemic has restricted their lives and feel extra measures would be useful. ‘I would like the restrictions to end as quickly as possible’, said one student. Another put it succinctly: ‘I prefer a pass over another lockdown.’
Excluded
Opponents point out that education should be accessible for all. Implementing the CoronaCheck app would exclude people who aren’t vaccinated.
‘The pass takes away people’s freedom of choice to get vaccinated’, one respondent said. Another student notes: ‘The right to education is important. It’s not like the right to get a drink. You can do without a beer, but not without an education.’
Against: You can do without a beer, but not without an education
Interestingly enough, many of the opponents of the corona pass say they are vaccinated themselves. ‘Education is a fundamental right that should depend on any passport. I’m pro-vax, but I’m against a Covid pass at the university’, one student says.
Another student somewhat ironically remarks: ‘People with different convictions should still have access to education. If not, they’ll only get stupider.’
Impossible to implement
Earlier, Dutch research universities and universities of applied sciences said they aren’t necessarily in favour of a corona pass for higher education. Aside from ethical objections, it would ‘be really difficult and perhaps even impossible’ to implement, said the Association of Universities of Applied Sciences and overarching university organisation VSNU.
The VSNU says universities ‘aren’t festival grounds where everyone enters through a single set of gates’. There are classes all day, students walking in and out of buildings, and a constant flow of people going to class or leaving, the overarching organisation said. ‘University campuses and buildings weren’t created to be controlled like that.’
The Association for Universities of Applied Sciences pointed out that implementing the pass would require a lot of manpower and would impact scheduling. If you need to let four thousand students into a building in fifteen minutes, you’d need sixty-four people to check them, a spokesperson said last week. ‘And that’s not taking into account students who don’t have proof of vaccination or a negative test or who refuse to show it.’
Many respondents explained their stance on a potential CoronaCheck app. You can find a selection below: