The University of Minnesota has canceled its study abroad programs in China for the spring semester amid concerns about the coronavirus outbreak.
Students set to study in China will head to other countries instead or get help returning to the Minnesota campuses, the U said in a public health alert Thursday.
About one-third of the U’s Twin Cities undergraduates study overseas; China was the eighth most popular destination in 2017-18.
The U also is discouraging faculty and staff from traveling to China, following the advice of the U.S. State Department.
Nearly 4,000 Chinese nationals were studying on the U’s five campuses during the fall semester, and many faculty have academic and research relationships with China.
Minnesota has had no confirmed cases of coronavirus. But the U is advising anyone who has returned from China in the last two weeks and suffering from flu-like symptoms to call ahead before going to see a doctor.
