New Students

Spring 2023

Dear Incoming Student,

Welcome to Swarthmore College. I am delighted to have you as a member of the Swarthmore community.

The health and wellness team supports the needs of our diverse student body by providing individualized holistic care and campus-wide education. The Health & Wellness Center offers myriad wellness promotion, counseling, acute care, and prevention services.

Students may schedule appointments at the Health and Wellness Center and can be seen by a Registered Nurse, Nurse practitioner, physician, dietitian, alcohol and other drug counselor, and health and wellness educator.  Our physicians are members of the Crozer Health System, a full-service teaching hospital and trauma center. The Health & Wellness Center provides acute care, alcohol and other drug counseling, health and wellness promotion, nutrition counseling, allergy injections, first aid treatment, reproductive health services, simple diagnostic screenings, travel health consultations, vaccinations, and wellness visits.  Our operational hours are based on when the need is highest, and are supplemented by an after-hours on call system that provides students with access to a registered nurse.

All visits to the Health & Wellness Center are free of cost.  A nominal fee is applied for simple diagnostic tests and most medications dispensed at the Health & Wellness Center.  Laboratory specimens are sent to LabCorp and are billed by the lab to the student’s health insurance.

The Swarthmore College Student Health Portal is available for managing your on-campus health needs and forms.  You can access your Student Health Portal through your mySwarthmore account.  Click on Worth Health Center, then, click on Student Health Portal.  The following forms are on the Student Health Portal.  Completion is due prior to arrival on campus and necessary to be eligible for a new student housing assignment and access to roommate information.  

1. Health Certificate completed by student online in the Student Health Portal

2. All students are enrolled by default in the Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP).  To waive out of the SHIP, follow these steps: 

   1. Log into mySwarthmore
   2. Click Worth Health Center
   3. Click Health Insurance Waiver
3. Immunization Record completed by healthcare provider (enter immunization dates in your student health portal then upload the completed form to your portal)
4. Tuberculosis (TB) Screening Questionnaire completed by healthcare provider (upload the completed form to your student health portal)
5. Physical within the past year completed by healthcare provider (upload  the completed form to your student health portal)

• COVID vaccine and booster.  Consistent with CDC guidelines, the College will accept vaccination with the following FDA approved or World Health Organization (WHO) recognized COVID-19 vaccines: Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca-CoviShield, Sinopharm-VeroCell, and Sinovac-Coronavac.   Complete initial series PLUS one booster dose.
• Meningococcal vaccine (MenACYW).  One dose is required at age 16 or older.
• Varicella vaccine.  Two doses or healthcare provider documentation of proof of Chicken Pox disease (date) is required.
• MMR (Measles, Mumps, Rubella).  Two doses are required at least 28 days apart after 12 months of age.
• Tetanus-Diptheria-Pertussis.  Four doses and tetanus booster within the last ten years is required.
• Hepatitis B vaccine.  Three doses or two doses of adult vaccine, or a positive Hepatitis B surface antibody is required.
• Polio.  Three doses of oral or four doses of injectable vaccine are required.
• Hepatitis A.  Two doses are recommended
• Meningitis B.  Series completion is recommended in consultation with your healthcare provider.
• Unvaccinated students must complete a waiver form. (located in your student health portal under forms) 

Health insurance is required for all Swarthmore students. Please read the Important Annual Health Insurance Requirement information carefully. If you are insured by another plan, please be certain that your private health insurance plan will adequately cover a student away from home. Services away from home, such as blood tests, MRI’s, x-rays, and care from specialists are often not covered under a private insurance plan. 

The full amount of the student health insurance plan premium will be charged to your tuition bill if you do not complete the online waiver process.  Failure to comply with this deadline will result in automatic enrollment into the Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP).  This fee will be added to the first tuition bill. I invite you to stop by and visit your health and wellness team. Please don’t hesitate to contact us at health@swarthmore.edu regarding any questions you may have about this information or if the Health & Wellness Center can be of assistance in managing a health concern.