April 11, 2022
To the Dartmouth community,
As of April 10, Dartmouth no longer requires weekly COVID-19 tests. Testing is still required for those who have symptoms, are attempting to test out of isolation, or are directed to test by a health-care provider, including the Dartmouth College Health Service or Axiom Medical.
There are many reasons to take a COVID-19 test, including complying with travel requirements or before interacting with people who are at high risk for severe disease or are not yet up to date on their vaccines. To support frequent, situation-based testing, students, faculty, and staff have access to in-person and take-home rapid antigen tests, and in-person and take-home PCR tests at testing centers and pick-up locations.
Rapid Antigen Tests
Rapid antigen tests will give you a result in about 15 minutes, but are not considered as sensitive as PCR tests for those without symptoms, so you may have to confirm your result by taking a second rapid antigen test or a PCR test.
In-person rapid antigen tests are available for those who have symptoms or are attempting to test out of isolation. Students should use the testing trailer in the Maynard Street parking lot in front of Dick’s House, open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Faculty and staff should contact Axiom Medical at 833-408-1338 for specific instructions and to schedule an appointment.
Take-home rapid antigen tests are available for students, faculty, and staff to pick up two at a time as supplies allow and can be used in situations where results are needed sooner than waiting for a PCR test. However, for a more accurate result, consider taking two rapid antigen tests 24 to 48 hours apart.
Those who test positive using a take-home rapid antigen test must isolate immediately and report their positive result. Students are required to report positive take-home rapid antigen results to the Dartmouth College Health Service by calling 603-646-9440 and leaving a detailed message and sending a photo of their positive test result to dicks.house.nurse@dartmouth.edu. Faculty and staff should contact their primary care provider and those who work on-site are required to report positive take-home rapid antigen results to Axiom Medical at 833-408-1338.
PCR Tests
Students, faculty, and staff will continue to have access to both in-person and take-home PCR tests and may choose to take up to two PCR tests a week.
In-person and take-home PCR tests can used to confirm a rapid antigen test result. They may also be required by a health-care provider for those without symptoms who have been identified as a close contact of someone with COVID-19. For both in-person and take-home PCR tests, it can take between 24 to 72 hours to receive results.
Read Dartmouth’s testing resources and frequently asked questions for more information. Send With questions, email covid-19.info@dartmouth.edu or call the COVID-19 Info Call Center at 603-646-2019.
Sincerely,
The COVID-19 Response Team