The truth about being a university student during a global pandemic

Being a university student during a global pandemic was not exactly how I thought my first year would go. I wished I had been able to meet new friends, join societies and go to university for my lectures and seminars.

I am not going to say it has been all sunshine and rainbows because it has not. Honestly, it has been draining and I am going to explain why…

1.The hours of zoom calls…💤

University has drained me. The sheer number of hours of zoom calls has been exhausting. My eyes just cannot deal with the vigorous zoom calls every day of the week!

I would have much preferred to go into university full stop. I understand that the university simply could not do anything about this but for me, it was hard to stay concentrated throughout my first year.

2.Everything in one place😵

Carrying on with the next topic of concentration. It was super hard to maintain when I was sat in my new surroundings that I wanted to explore, my phone next to me and all the other distractions that go along with being in your own home.

Now you may say “why did not you sit somewhere where you would not get distracted?“, but with a global pandemic happening and me living in a one-room studio with my fiancé, it was simply impossible. The rule was to stay home, so I had to deal with what I had.

Heading in a different direction, family means a lot to me, as it does to the majority of people which meant that moving to a new city to study at university during a pandemic was a struggle. Sat in my university lectures thinking about when I could see my family next, was tough enough but with assignments due I had to keep myself focused on what was more important at that point.

3.Less chance to be social…😔

My first year as a student drained me. I was not able to fully explore and make new friends. If I had been able to meet new friends and go out to get to know them, it would have made my first year much more bearable.

Having no friends in my lectures/seminars to speak to was not exactly how I thought my year would go. Most people were afraid of speaking to one another due to the pandemic.

When we were finally allowed in a few lectures, we were spaced 2 meters apart. No one knew where they stood and what boundaries others had. It was impossible to get to know your peers, so I did not make any new friends which was such a downfall. 

So, the truth about being a university student during a global pandemic is simple. It has been a rough year for all students studying – whether that be secondary school, college, or university.

It has been even harder for those moving to new cities to study where new, unfamiliar surroundings were unable to be explored and meeting new friends was impossible.

I’d like to say good luck to all those who are carrying on studying next year and hopefully, the world can return back to some sort of normality. 

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What has your experience been of studying through a global pandemic?! Hopefully this upcoming academic year will bring some normality… what are you most looking forward to?

Let us know in the comments below and be sure to give the article a rating! 😀⭐️