Immunization Requirements
Incoming students for the 2024-2025 academic year are required to comply with the Santa Clara University Immunization Requirements (2024-2025).
Students who entered in the 2023-2024 academic year are required to comply with the Santa Clara University Immunization Requirements (2023-2024).
Students who entered in the 2022-2023 academic year are required to comply with the Santa Clara University Immunization Requirements (2022-2023).
Effective April 2, 2024, the University’s COVID-19 vaccination policy strongly recommends that all undergraduate and graduate students be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 as vaccinations and boosters are safe, effective tools that significantly minimize the chances of serious illness, hospitalization, and death.
All immunization records must be uploaded to the Cowell Health Portal by August 1. Please note that new and incoming students will not be able to access the Cowell Health Portal to upload documents until after matriculation. This is June 14 for Law/JST, June 17 for Undergraduates, July 1 for Graduate Engineering, July 2 for Graduate Business, and July 15 for all other Graduates. (For those starting in the Fall 2024 quarter)
Students who fail to upload verification by this deadline may have a hold placed on their registration, preventing them from adding or dropping courses.
Immunization Exemptions
To request a medical immunization exemption, students can have their doctor complete the Exemption Form and upload the completed form to the Cowell Health Portal. Students must email cowellcenter@scu.edu to notify staff it has been uploaded. If no email is received, the exemption request will not be reviewed in a timely manner.
(All requests will be reviewed by the Campus Physician to determine if the exemption is approved)
All exemption/extension requests are due no later than August 1. We strongly encourage you to upload your documentation sooner rather than later to allow adequate time for review.
General Information
If you do not have access to records, you may be able to submit a titer test. A titer is a laboratory test, ordered by a medical provider, that measures the presence and amount of antibodies in the blood. A titer may be used to prove immunity to disease. This option should only be used by those who no longer have access to immunization records. Titers are only accepted for MMR, Varicella, and Hepatitis B.
If getting the necessary immunizations would cause significant financial hardship, you can email cowellcenter@scu.edu and request an extension until you are covered by the University Student Health Insurance. Before doing so, please upload any immunization records you do have. Extensions will be made on a case-by-case basis.
International students will have an additional 30 days from the start of the quarter to submit any outstanding requirements, as we understand some of the vaccines are not available in every country. However, they should upload all records they do have by the deadline.
Frequently Asked Questions
For questions about records and individual vaccines and tests, please visit our FAQ document. You must be logged into your SCU email account to access.
A PDF format - SCU Immunization FAQ - 9/4/2024 is available for those without an SCU email address, however the document on Google Drive will be the most up to date.