When my daughter finished up her first year of college in the spring, we started discussing the variety of experiences she and her friends had during an unprecedented, sometimes chaotic pandemic year at school. I was struck by how differently each college handled the situation and I asked her to interview her friends and share what she learned. As a music and English major, she was excited to document how things went for her and her friends - it is certainly something they will never forget! Hope you enjoy her article.
2020 and 2021: the years of Zoom calls, hand sanitizer, face masks, and so much loss. This past year and a half have been nothing short of devastating for many. People of all stages of life were stunted by the pandemic, especially those of school age. Trying to receive an education while balancing a pandemic impacts students of all ages, and I think it’s time to bring college kids into the conversation. It was a necessary evil to keep ourselves apart, but for most of us, it made learning extremely difficult. It’s fascinating how so many schools had such different set ups, and one student had a drastically different experience from the next. I am a student, and most of my friends entered college in the 2020-21 school year. I took on interviewing them, all from different universities and colleges, to paint a picture of the year we struggled through.
My friend Pamela went to the University of Pittsburgh, which allowed students on campus in both the fall and spring. Even though she was there, she was not able to attend any classes in person, doing them all from her computer in her dorm. In a large school setting, she found it difficult to make friends. She didn't hit it off with her floormates, so her freshman year was not very social. Her saving grace was the fact that she did have a roommate that she knew, but she was unable to branch out. When asked what she felt she missed out on specifically, she noted, “Pitt usually gives freshmen a huge “O”[orientation] week, but it was all virtual”. She had hopes of meeting people through orientation activities, but the virtual nature made that impossible. She was sad that she missed out on big Pitt traditions, which is a sentiment shared across many campuses. With all the craziness on campus, she was still able to get a job as the visual editor for the school newspaper, and hopes to meet more people when they are able to return to working in person in the fall.
My friend Kayla attended Muhlenberg College in Allentown, PA. She was able to attend campus both semesters. Kayla’s experience was unique in the fall semester, as Muhlenberg chose to have freshmen only on campus, and they didn’t allow roommates. Even so, Kayla was able to make tons of friends. There were COVID restrictions and limitations, but with outdoor common spaces and trivia activities, she enjoyed her social life plenty. She had a mix of online and in person classes, but much preferred the in person classes. Similar to Pamela, Kayla felt that she missed out on first year traditions that Muhlenberg typically held. Overall, I would say her experience leaned towards the positive side when considering what students have gone through this past year. In the spring semester, she was able to have a roommate, and the social deprivation many felt wasn’t as prevalent.
Emily, another one of my close friends, had a more unique experience. She is attending Lafayette College in Easton, PA. Lafayette elected to not bring on students for the fall semester, having nearly everyone learning remotely from home. In the spring, mostly everyone was able to return. Lafayette did allow roommates, and Emily was lucky enough to make friends through her first year seminar, and found someone to room with. Lafayette was conducting both online and in person classes and labs, and many clubs were allowed to meet in person with some restrictions. She had a fantastic semester socially, and was very glad she was able to attend. She certainly felt that she missed out on some freshman things, but was able to acclimate well.
My friend Hannah attended Wellesley College in Wellesley, MA. Her experience was similar to Pamela’s without the comfort of a roommate. Wellesley had strict COVID policies, limiting her to socializing with those in her “block”. Things weren’t easy socially, but she did find someone to room with in the coming semester. She had a mix of remote and in person classes, but Wellesley took on a “term” schedule, meaning they only had two classes at a time, splitting the semester in half. Condensing the classes like this took a toll on students, making it a more challenging academic environment overall. Hannah looks forward to some normalcy in this coming year.
John had a very similar experience to mine - completely remote for both semesters. He attends Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA. He found remote learning very socially isolating, and the online classes were pretty taxing. He had an appreciation for most of his professors and felt as though he learned despite the situation, but still was unable to connect with anyone socially. It was very hard for professors to create an environment that allowed for social interaction when everything was done over Zoom. He went random for the roommate selection for this coming semester, and has hit it off with the guy he was assigned with, but is eager to get to some in-person classes.. He was also missing the traditions he was supposed to take part in, and hopes that Dickinson can find ways to make up for lost time.
Jenna, a friend that attends Brown University, had a wildly different college experience for her first year of college. Similar to other schools, Brown did not bring their freshmen on campus for the fall semester. What set them apart, for better or worse, was that they chose not enroll their freshmen in any courses. They had the fall semester off, making up for it over the summer. Jenna’s feelings about this way of being a college freshman are mixed. She is glad to be on campus, and is taking a class in person, but her housing situation is not ideal. The lack of air conditioning has been a notable issue in the Rhode Island heat. Socially she has had a great year, having success in meeting great friends, even with COVID restrictions. After a break, the fall semester will begin with everyone on campus.
My own experience seems to be a mix of my friends’. I am attending Gettysburg College in Gettysburg, PA. I chose to stay home for the fall semester, and I am very glad I did. Gettysburg allowed mostly everyone on campus, and allowed roommates. Unfortunately, partying was a huge issue, and the COVID cases spiked out of control. They made the decision to send everyone home, with the exception of the freshman, and separated roommates. The chaos of being isolated so heavily during everyone’s first semester of college had to have been really rough, and I’m glad to have avoided that. I did manage to make a friend through my first year seminar and I plan to room with her in the fall. Since both John and Emily were home, we had some fun while doing school online. I was home for the second semester as well, as Gettysburg kept the freshmen home. It was more isolating, and I found my motivation for online school was pretty much gone. Being a music student from home was hard as well, as Zoom piano lessons were not ideal. Virtual school was a really weird experience, and I look forward to some normal schooling this fall.
COVID-19 threw quite the wrench in all our lives, and stripped us of some experiences in both high school and college that we had been looking forward to our whole lives. We have found ways to adapt and overcome, and I have a strong feeling that many of us can find ways to make the most of the time we still have in college. With this upcoming semester, plans are up in the air for many schools regarding COVID protocol, but we all have hopes for a far more normal year. - Lizzie Fuscaldo, Gettysburg College, Class of 2024
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