UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — This week, approximately 24,000 Penn State students from identified areas with a higher prevalence of coronavirus and those who will be on the front lines to welcome and work with students will be receiving at-home saliva COVID-19 testing kits to be taken before arrival on Penn State campuses.
The tests were announced during a July 30 community town hall as part of the University’s comprehensive multi-layered approach to testing, contact tracing and monitoring for the fall semester. The remainder of the 30,000 tests that were discussed in the town hall will be given to faculty and staff who are similarly situated in areas with higher virus infection rates or work closely with students.
All students selected for the required testing will receive an email to their @psu.edu address no later than Wednesday, Aug. 5, with instructions on ordering a test kit from Vault Health, an individualized registration link at Vault Health’s testing website for students residing in the United States, and directions about the testing process.
Students should order their test kit immediately upon receiving those instructions to allow enough time to receive results before coming to campus. The entire testing process will take at least seven to 10 days from the time students order their test kit. Once the test is taken, results can be expected generally within 48-72 hours after the sample kit arrives at the lab for processing.
After receiving the testing kit in the mail, a telehealth visit can begin. The test is performed through a secure video visit supervised by a Vault Health practitioner, eliminating the potential risk of exposure to others involved with in-person sample collection.
Test results will be sent to the students via a Vault Health email. A copy of the test result also will be sent to Penn State.
For more information about the pre-arrival testing process, test details, test results, steps to take following results and more, there are frequently asked questions available on the Student Affairs website: https://studentaffairs.psu.edu/covidtesting.
The testing is part of Penn State’s requirements and expectations for students to meet prior to returning to campus and local communities this semester.