In response to concerns over the spread of the virus responsible for COVID-19, Keio University announced on February 28 it is canceling graduation ceremonies and postpone entrance ceremonies.

【Updated Mar. 17】Orientations and spring semester course registration schedule updated. Announcement regarding the implementation of online classes.

On March 17, the Shonan Fujisawa Campus Office of Academic Affairs announced changes on the AY2020 spring semester academic calendar as follows.

Details	Schedule
Start for student screening application for spring semester courses	April 6 (Mon) 15:00
Deadline for student screening application for spring semester courses	April 13 (Mon) 17:00
Announcement of student screening results for spring semester courses	April 15 (Wed) 17:00
Online courses registration period	April 16(Thur) 12:30-April 21 (Tue) 11:00
Orientations for new students and new semester	April 27(Mon), April 28 (Tues)
Class start date for full-semester and first-half of semester courses	April 30 (Thurs)

Classes will be delivered online as much as possible. Please make sure to stay updated by checking the latest announcements on keio.jp.

Data science qualification examination only for current students

Data science qualification examination will take place only for current students on the originally scheduled date.

Plenty of space will be made between seats. Doors and windows will be regularly opened to keep the room to be well-ventilated. Students are required to contact the Academic Affairs Office if they have cold symptoms with a fever of 37.5 degrees celsius or above.

Date	Time	Place	Details
March 26 (Thurs)	16:10~17:25	Ω11,12	(PM) Data science qualification examination
March 26 (Thurs)	16:45~18:00	Ω21,22	(EI) Data science qualification examination

Students who have neither earned credit for "Basics of Data Science" nor passed the Data science qualification examination are required to take this examination since it is the prerequisite to register "Data Science 1" and "Data Science 2", which are required for advancing to the third year.

Postponement of AY2020 annual health checkup of students

The Keio University Health Center has announced that in addition to the changes in the AY2020 academic calendar, the annual health checkup for students planned from April through May 2020 has been postponed.

Further details regarding the schedule have not been announced, however, details will be posted on keio.jp and the Keio University Health Center website once decided.

It is possible to substitute the results of health examinations undergone at separate medical institutions in place of the health checkup for the 2020 academic year, however, students will be responsible for any costs. Please make sure to consult with the Keio University Health Center if an early health checkup is needed.

Cancellation or postponement of ceremonies for both undergraduate faculties and graduate schools

The following events are canceled:

AY 2019 Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony
AY 2019 Graduate Commencement Ceremony
Related events, including the 25th-anniversary viewing ceremony for alumni

The following events have been postponed until further notice:

AY 2020 Undergraduate Entrance Ceremony
AY 2020 Graduate Entrance Ceremony

Information regarding diploma awards and certificate issuance will be made available at the same time as grade reports (scheduled to be sent on March 10) and the keio.jp portal. The exact schedule will be announced on a later date.

The university previously stated on February 25, in an announcement "Measures for COVID-19 (coronavirus disease) at the Commencement and Entrance Ceremonies" that all ceremonies were planned to go on as scheduled, but acknowledged there was "a possibility of new measures being introduced hereafter as the situation dictates." The ceremonies and events were originally planned to be conducted at the Hiyoshi Commemorative Hall, which recently completed renovations.

Several other private universities, including Waseda University and Meiji University, have already announced the cancellation of entrance and commencement ceremonies in response to the spread of the virus responsible for COVID-19.

【Updated Feb. 29】university planning alternative celebration

Keio’s Office of Communications and Public Relations announced later that evening on Twitter (in Japanese)
"we are currently considering installing a graduation celebration sign or distributing something for graduates on the Web to celebrate" everyone who graduates as an alternate means of celebration to the traditional commencement ceremony.

【Updated Mar. 9】Commencement and graduate degree conferral ceremonies to be streamed online on Mar. 11

The Office of Communications and Public Relations announced on March 4 that part of the canceled commencement and degree conferral ceremonies will be distributed online. Similar measures were taken after the Great Tohoku Earthquake in 2011 (AY 2010).
The broadcasts will be conducted on March 23 (10:00) for undergraduates and March 26 (10:00) for graduate students, and will include an address from the president of Keio University, congratulatory speech, and other formalities delivered traditionally during the commencement ceremonies. The details and URL have not yet been announced, but a link will be posted on the Keio Jukusei website.

※ Editor’s note: at publication time, Keio University has not released an official statement in English regarding cancellation and postponement of the commencement and entrance ceremonies. Relevant information has been translated from the official Japanese announcements, with dates of news releases referencing the time information was first made available online in Japanese.

Graduation ceremony cancelled, entrance ceremony postponed over COVID-19 concerns