Texas A&M University announces longer school days and classes on Saturdays this fall

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KTRK) -- Texas A&M University announced a new schedule for the fall semester on Wednesday.

University officials said school days will run longer and some students might have classes on Saturdays, but all of the universities in the Texas A&M University System will open in the fall with face-to-face instruction.

Students are set to start the main move-in process on Aug. 8, and classes will begin on Aug. 19, according to Texas A&M Provost Carol Fierke.

Classes will end for the semester before Thanksgiving, on Nov. 24, with many online finals after the holiday.

"Being smart, safe and deliberate will help us return to the important work of educating our students," Chancellor John Sharp said. "You can take classes online, but you can't become an Aggie on line. That sentiment applies to each of our other universities, too."

The university also mentioned postponing its study-abroad program, which is the largest in the country.

In-person classes at Texas A&M have been canceled due to the coronavirus outbreak since March when professors moved to an online format at the time.