University is always described as being the most memorable 4 years of your life. Although it’s not always easy dealing with heavy workloads and many all-nighters during exam season, it’s a place where you meet your lifelong friends and discover what you’re truly passionate about. But how does all of this translate to the current state of the world impacted by COVID? For many students, they’ve experienced online university more than in person. Some students haven’t even been on campus yet. However this year, things are looking a bit bright for students who have the opportunity of hybrid learning. This entails that students will have tutorials, labs, and seminars in person while also following social distancing rules. So how do we ease back into hybrid university after an online year?
Plan out your schedule wisely! Although some of us may be eager to go back to university on campus or even see campus for the first time, it can be very overwhelming to go from taking all online classes to some hybrid classes. Online and in-person classes require a very different approach. The way you study for online classes is a lot different than in person along with making connections with your classmates, and taking exams. If you’re commuting you should keep in mind the travel time and try not to have online and an in-person class too close together because you may risk missing one of your classes. Although there are some on-campus study spaces, a lot of them are not guaranteed because many students require those spaces and due to social distancing rules you will need to book them in advance. Be considerate when booking your rooms and consider whether or not your Zoom class requires a lot of verbal participation when you’re booking.
After a year-and-a-half of Among Us Discord 2 nights and socially distance walks being the only source of many people’s socialization, it may be difficult to make friends at university and be around bigger groups of people. That is called quarantine anxiety. An easy way to make connections with your fellow classmates would be by joining your classes’ WhatsApp group chat. Within these WhatsApp groups, you can often find people you vibe with, and could see yourself becoming friends with. In some of my classes, I was even added to smaller WhatsApp groups of students who joined me in both studying and watching Netflix.. We have even made plans to meet up once the campus starts opening up a bit more.
WhatsApp groups are even helpful for in-person classes because you can ask questions and maintain connections with your classmates in and out of class. University itself has a lot of online and even some in-person events that you can attend where you can possibly make a new friend, so, go and learn about the different events and resources your university has.
Self-care has been a huge topic especially this past year. But it is also an extremely important idea that almost all students should consider. Partaking in self-care improves your health mentally and physically. Although this past year may have made you feel mentally tired, looking after yourself is very important. Self-care doesn’t have to be elaborate, expensive, or time-consuming; it could simply be giving yourself a break- even if you had 1 class in person that day. Go take a nap or even watch an episode of that show you’ve been binge-watching all summer. Always remember that it’s okay to take time for yourself and it’s okay to feel a little overwhelmed and nervous about school opening up and having to be around people a lot more often than we are used to now.
Navigating through a pandemic is not something any of us are equipped to handle, let alone going back to a new norm of life. Hybrid classes are something we should ease into, not jump into. Although it may seem overwhelming and exciting, it’s important to make sure you have a realistic schedule, make connections with others, and practice self-care. This will help result in a much easier transition to the new hybrid school year.
Remember, we’re all in this together.