Skip to content
Navigating a New Political Landscape: View real-time updates about the impact of and Northeastern’s response to recent political changes.
Apply
Stories

Less than half of us college students know their schools’ vaccination policies, study shows

Photo by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University
The first round of Moderna COVID-19 vaccinations are administered to frontline employees at Northeastern’s Cabot Testing Center on Jan. 06, 2021.

Since returning to college campuses in the fall for in-person learning, only 49% of students accurately understood their university’s COVID-19 vaccination policies, according to a U.S. study by the Covid States Project, a collaborative effort by researchers from Northeastern, Harvard, Northwestern, and Rutgers.

Of particular concern are the unvaccinated students who may be unaware that their schools have vaccine mandates in place, which points to a larger problem of universities’ uneven mandate implementation or enforcement standards, researchers say. For example, some universities may not require students to submit proof of immunizations, even if the institution mandates shots. Some students have also sought exemptions, taken advantage of vague language, or even filed legal challenges. Complexities in the policies themselves may have also contributed to the disconnect.

“There are a fair number of uncertain and unvaccinated students in universities that theoretically have mandates,” says David Lazer, university distinguished professor of political science and computer sciences at Northeastern, and one of the researchers who conducted the study. “That should set off some alarm bells.”

Continue reading at News@Northeastern.

More Stories

The value of the dollar bill, pictured on Friday, May 23, 2025, is depreciated. Photo by Alyssa Stone/Northeastern University

The value of the dollar is dropping. What does that mean for Americans and the world?

05.30.2025
Drones have become a game-changer in the Russia-Ukraine War, says Mai’a Cross, a professor of political science at Northeastern. Photo by Roman Chop/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images

How cheap combat drones could turn Ukraine into a ‘defense powerhouse’ in Europe

05.29.2025
Generation Z is the first generation in several decades to not lose their religious affiliation as they age. (Photo by Edward Berthelot/Getty Images)

Why is Gen Z more religious than previous generations?

06.10.25
All Stories