University life for 'freshers' (2019/20) - first year campus life suspended, sitting out/surviving the pandemic and staying on top of studying [Edited by MNHQ at OP's request]

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This is so tough for our first years but thank goodness they managed fresher's week and something of a 'normal' start.

I really feel for those who had to cancel travel plans in gap years and now can't enjoy a normal fresher's experience.

DS wouldn't dream of cheating either.

Yes there's something to be said for 'Carpe Diem' and not putting things off. DN has taken a gap year, isn't now earning as she intended and her summer trip to Italy to learn Italian seems to be in jeopardy too. Not the year she was anticipating having at all.

DS has 4 schoolmates who all took a gap year and are due to start at different unis this autumn. Really wondering if they will get any sort of Freshers experience and if all learning is online, how they will get to meet others, other than those they are in halls with

There could be a massive drop-off in people going away to university because of COVID-19.

So many potential changes to university life.

@mum2eim
All the best for yours too. Hope the first one went well.
I think dd was happy with it, but she did say it was the one she found easiest. They need to submit it sometime today so we need to get the scanner working.
I wish I could say that I would be a help to dd, but I look at what she's doing, and it rings a bell, but that's where it ends. I could probably look through and spot any obvious errors like 1 +1 =3 but actually she wouldn't want me to do that anyway.
My worst subjects (linear algebra and analysis) are her least favourites too. However we only had to pass overall, so I just ignored those in favour of the ones I could do something in, whereas she has to pass every exam, so I suspect is already far ahead of my understanding in those. (I'm lazy, she's a worker)

I'm not sure these exams will give much indication on how well they'll do later either. Dd's been working through slowly most of Saturday, but with frequent breaks. She's chatting away to her friends at the same time. It's really funny. They're complaining about their handwriting, the slowness of the paper downloading, the ink running out, and all carefully not mentioning anything to do with the exam question. It's an official maths group chat, so she suspects it will be being monitored, but even so they aren't even going as far as "question 4 was hard".

The thing dd is finding hardest is that they haven't given them a threshold. They've just said something like "a pass mark", so she feels at sea. She likes to know an exact amount so she can feel safe.
I suspect it's because they don't actually want to fail anyone at this point because it's so difficult for them all. I hope that's the case really as I think failing anyone at this point after this year unless there had already been serious concerns would be a bit mean. If nothing else they could have spent the last 7 weeks with Covid.

I asked dd what the arrangements are if you'll ill, and she thinks you will be given it later, but hasn't seen anything official. They must have thought of that-especially this year!

@Witchend yes my DD worked through it on and off yesterday and is finishing it off today. I think she is still working on 40% pass mark but as she hasn't really read the emails properly then it wouldn't surprise me if she has missed something! She only found out by chance that the 48hr time frame was in advance of the original exam date, not starting from it!!
She says that there will be an opportunity to do the exams in August if there have been problems now. She got that from the senior tutor in college who she has been in contact with so I think it is likely to be correct.

I must say, having her doing exams at home makes me feel quite anxious and she keeps having to tell me that in any other year she would have been away and I would have had no idea how much work she was or wasn't doing!

@mum2eim
She says that there will be an opportunity to do the exams in August if there have been problems now. She got that from the senior tutor in college who she has been in contact with so I think it is likely to be correct.
That's roughly what I expected.

I suspect the 40% mark will be the maximum they go to as a threshold. I can't see them raising it. DD's worry is that everyone will do so much better with being open book and 48 hours to do it. However I'm not sure that's the case. DD will do better, I suspect, because she's a slow worker and time is her greatest enemy in exams. Otoh I don't think I would have done much better as I normally had run out of what I could do (or finished the exam depending on the subject) by the end of 3 hours, and having more time would have not helped.

Being at home has generally been nice, although she had a bit of an upset a couple of weeks ago where she declared she couldn't do maths, hated maths and was going to fail. She's not the type to go dramatic, so I had a couple of days worrying that she was going to fail them, before she said she should get 40% but was worrying that they would raise it, but still thought she'd pass. If she'd been at uni then she'd have probably gone round to one of her maths friends (she has some that are click of the fingers know it) and they'd have helped her and then she'd have been fine.

She has struggled more than I expected, and I think more than she expected. As soon as they announced online learning she was on the train, whereas I tended to come home as late as allowed. And she was pleased to be home etc. It was only when it was clear that they wouldn't go back that she struggled. I'm hoping they get back next term, although my worry is if we go into a second wave with lockdown then we won't be able to get to her as it's so far.

@Witchend my DD struggled the first 2 weeks of time at home and she had left uni as late as she possibly could and I think harboured thoughts she might be able to come back for the summer. So she left her maths notes in Durham! It's taken her about 4 weeks to start to think about doing any work and I think she's left it too late. I'm glad it's open book because at least she can look some things up. Time will tell if she's done enough!

I do hope they get back next term and can study and socialise in their little student household bubbles.

Dh and dd did a dash up to Durham to fetch everything when it was clear that she wouldn't go back.
Apparently police were stopping people on the road they'd have taken the day after they went and asking where they were doing, and we're not sure if they would have been let through. I suspect so, as moving house was allowed, and it would clearly have been a one off.
I think she thought they'd be going back for the summer right up to that point, and that was when she got upset.

She's got a nice house for 3 next year, but one of them is an international student, so she's obviously less likely to be able to get back.

DS seems to be putting in a decent amount of time, but I am a little wary of his approach. He doesn’t like the online recorded lectures and is preferring to go through the notes for learning. I asked if he doesn’t lose something not having the context brought from the lecturer but he didn’t seem to think it was an issue. He’s also not one for online tutorial sessions so I’m worried if he has no ‘contact’ hours with anyone - hopefully he’s syncing up with other people on the course at least? Always useful to bounce things off people

My DD and her boyfriend are both doing maths classes as part of their degrees, and they've been attending either live or recorded maths lectures. Her boyfriend just had his final exam for this year (we're in the US and he's on the semester system) and he said it was incredibly difficult compared to what they'd been learning in class. He's an incredibly bright kid and an assiduous worker so that's a bit worrying...

So, apparently the reason I cannot get on to SfE logon is because I am Virgin Media!

SfE have basically told every VM customer that they should individually call them, be put on hold for 900000000 years to get them to change our firewall settings! ummmmm....noooooo.... YOU and VM need to fix this SfE!!

Piggy, that's got me worried. We are also on VM and ds hasn't been able to get on the SF website. I wonder if they'll extend the deadline?

What you need to do instead is google SfE forms PR1 and you can print a hard copy form. Bit of a faff to fill in but probably better than trying to remember your multiple passwords to get on to the VM Fort Knox phone call system!

Ironically, if I was at work, I could do it!

I read somewhere that if you're having problems getting on the student finance website to access it via 4G. Not sure why that would make a difference but they said it worked.

I think I would ask a friend if I could sit in their garden within reach of their wifi and fill in the forms, just make sure they are not on virgin first.

Yes, if it is a Virgin Media problem, using your phone as a hotspot might help.

I tried my phone and it didn't work either (although come to think of it I probably didn't turn the wifi off!) and all our neighbours are VM (it's a new estate and we were all signed up!). I think the hard copy forms will be what I have to do (tbh I wouldn't want to do an official form on a phone anyway) . It does rather make me wonder why Virgin haven't sorted this and/or what is so weird about the SfE website!

The irony is that once you do get onto the SFE website it's a very quick job to do. Such a PITA for those of you having issues.

DS has been reminded that he needs to do his but currently doing two essays (the last of this academic year) so distracted.

We haven’t done it yet. Deadline is June isn’t it?

I hope so benji !

It's the 22nd June @Piggywaspushed and @Benjispruce - for returning students that is.

Thanks.

Printed the form off : 32 pages, mostly irrelevant! Now ordering new ink...

I had to get one of my neighbours on the street support group to print it off !! I normally do all my printing at work !