We are delighted to share this personal blog piece from a Year 2 student.
This student has supported the university in various ways. They have also presented at conferences to share the authentic and lived experiences some of our students have to navigate while studying.
We are grateful to listen to their reflections on their past year and invite you to do the same. Does this resonate with you? How would you respond to the questions the student raises?
Pushing through the Pandemic.
What a whirlwind this academic year has been. One thing that many students will have in common is the sense of chaos we felt when the pandemic first struck.
How will I learn? How will I pass my degree? Will I still have access to the library? Will I still get a proper education?
Now that the pandemic appears to be calming down (fingers crossed), it’d be interesting to know what you all thought about the above questions.
Have you coped with the pressures better than you thought or has it been even more difficult than you imagined?
I believe the panic of the pandemic has made us into a new kind of student which the world has never seen before.
We are the hybrid era of students.
Of course, online university courses already existed pre-pandemic. However, the uncertainty, the stress and the lack of resources that has accompanied online learning in the last year is something all students can collectively relate to.
Hybrid students such as us have shown great determination, strength and trust in our institutions. We have also found new ways to motivate ourselves which we may not have recognised previously.
We have had to work out of new spaces, with new restraints, new distractions and none of the designated areas specifically designed so that our education needs are fulfilled.
Our entire experience as students has been turned upside down with a COVID-19 cherry on top.
However, if there is anything to take from this, it is that we have stepped up to the challenge, supported each other, trusted our lecturers to provide for us and proved that nothing will come between us and our end goals.
Our lecturers have been the secure base for us to continue our learning journey and have shown us that when the going gets tough, collaborate, communicate, concentrate and, as always, read another book.
Congratulations to all of the university staff and students. We are the hybrid learning era – future generations of students will be writing dissertations about us.
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