Penn State created comprehensive guidelines for personal and college travel during the COVID-19 pandemic. These guidelines were developed with the health and safety of the entire university community in mind in accordance with the latest information and requirements from the Pennsylvania Department of Health, the Governor’s Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the State. All Penn staters are asked to follow these basic guidelines for their own health and the common good.
Considering that travel poses additional risks in relation to the spread of COVID-19, Penn State has developed the following guidelines for domestic and international travel with additional restrictions for those who are not vaccinated.
Compulsory COVID-19 vaccination for university-funded travel
For all national and international trips starting June 1, 2021 or later, all employees who apply for university-related trips funded by the university Got to Be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 until the departure date. Please note the following:
- Excluded from this are trips that are financed from non-university funds (e.g. federal / state grants).
- This obligation does not apply to employees with a departure date before June 1, 2021 and employees whose travel was approved on or after June 1 before May 25.
- Department heads can exempt themselves from the compulsory vaccination if the trips requested are part of their regular professional duties.
Employees who are not vaccinated because of an illness, proven disability, or religious belief can apply for a waiver by contacting the Affirmative Action Office at aao@psu.edu. If a non-vaccinated person submits a travel request for research purposes, they must obtain a travel permit from their head of unit (for domestic travel) or, for international travel, from the office of the vice-priest for faculty affairs (colleges and campuses), Lora Weiss (institutes and applied research lab) or Dr. Kevin Black (College of Medicine). Unvaccinated employees who are permitted to travel must have a Recognition of the risk. Unvaccinated international travelers should get a virus test three to five days after the trip and stay at home for seven days after the trip and quarantine themselves.
