University experience is awful at the moment

[Cupcakke]

DD moved into university on Saturday. The rules are very stringent, both campus bars are closed, the university library has very little capacity and the restaurant is take away only. There are virtually no freshers events in person.

Her flat mates are very shy and not very social and she is in a small flat.

Large gatherings keep occurring but the penalty for this is very severe so DD very cautious not to attend these.

She is essentially watching Netflix in her room. I fear for the loneliness. The online events she has attended are poorly attended and just very boring.

Teaching starts next week and her In person contact hours are just 4 hours a week.

Anyone else’s dc thinking this years university experience is non existent.

Someone up thread mentioned it. Got me panicking a bit.

Re. cutting fees for online courses, I don't think that people realise that online courses are often more expensive than face to face. We run parallel Masters courses and the fully online version costs £3000 more because it requires much more tutor time, more 1-1 and a whole load of tech support and development. It is whizzy and interactive though, not just recorded lectures. Face to face teaching is a breeze in comparison.

Dd was told weeks ago that if there is a proper lockdown, the halls will stay open and students be expected to stay put.
Needless to say this will not be happening ....

I have 2 2nd year students and I am worried for them both. 1 more than the other due to flat arrangements.

They are literally in a room with a laptop. Being 2nd year she has a few friends I'm like Freshers trying to find their people. Even so I'm worried sick for my 2nd years because the difference from 1 year ago in contact time, lifestyle etc is so stark. 1 of mine is already reporting being at a loose end and she's actually very good at getting out there and stuck in.

I have to say if I had one going off this Sept is have preferred them to defer and get a local job or do a local college course at home than be away like they are. It's poor value in monetary and experience. I suspect many will drop out and who can blame them.

Also really worried, I think unis have been completely dishonest about what they would be able to offer. DS is doing a lab based subject with online virtual lab experiences. It’s really crap, they should have been honest and yes to the exorbitant accommodation costs, they would have been better off staying at home. I will fully support him if he wants to drop out and restart next year.

That said, I agree that the social experience for freshers is a nightmare. It's hard though- we've been bombarded with negative local press about students appearing in crowds and not distancing appropriately this week, even at events which have been planned carefully for them.

I would have deferred.

Thing is, corona will be spreading around the universities. It already is (I don't want to say which uni I'm at but we have it). Can we, in all conscience, set up groups of six different students each night and just hope some of them don't spread it?

I can't see a way we can make the university experience ok this year. I just can't. Face to face is bizarre, masks, can't hear what people are saying let alone recognize them, and quite a lot of students don't want to come in anyway, they are opting out or quarantining or are ill and some had said they don't want to come in because of the level change today. Online, if done well, is actually better than socially distanced learning where you can't have proper discussions.

We were planning more face to face teaching, I don't think that will keep going in the face of government restrictions completely, although some will if we are lucky. Being designated as 'essential' has changed things a bit.

I think universities should have suggested more students stay home and study from there though, now they have all moved and Boris has suddenly announced working from home is the new (old) thing. They didn't for financial reasons.

Online teaching isn't always inferior though, if the student is engaged and motivated. People also might over-estimate the amount their child really would have gone to lectures, I usually reckon a half to a third are ok to poor attenders by the end of term and there's usually a good few who simply never attend the lecture, despite constant emails to encourage them to do so. I offer way more contact time than is ever taken up by the students. They don't tell their parents this.

I have to say if I had one going off this Sept is have preferred them to defer and get a local job or do a local college course at home than be away like they are.

@LocalLockdowner - it's not that straightforward though. We discussed this, but there are very few jobs on offer as the usual first jobs in hospitality, tourism, retail, office juniors etc have been cut to the bone. If they defer until next year, they're just milling around for a year and will then be competing for internships and job experience placements with all the 2nd and 3rd years who missed out due to Covid, as well as all the other deferrers and the following year's intake of students. there could be a bottle neck.

My DS thought about deferring, but was fed up of his bedroom at home for months this year, and can’t travel easily and there aren’t many jobs. I think he’s better off starting uni, even if it’s not the experience I’d hoped for for him.

2 out of 650 students turned up to online drop-in sessions I put on this week and last week, to discuss questions or concerns about teaching before the semester starts.

I wonder what those students are telling their parents about what the university is/isn’t offering them.

And yes. I absolutely agree with i’lldeal. Students often don’t turnup in person. I am worried to hear how many are feeling lonely though.

DS didn’t defer as he’d already had a gap year. Obviously he didn’t do very much but he’d had a hard few years and just chilling at home actually did him the world of good.

akerman I am worried too, genuinely concerned they may be sitting alone in a small room. I'm trying to reach out to them as much as I can. Quite a lot don't want to come onto campus though or can't are or ill. The reluctance over face to face teaching is not coming solely from staff, indeed, quite a few of us are happy to do this if we are not in higher risk groups.

I totally agree. I'm unemployed from the tourism sector thanks to Covid.

But I do know sever students who were working 30 plus hours a week at home and I think I might have thought twice about leaving that for uni.
But yes the poor kids trying to get into 2021 cohort have a big struggle ahead of them. It's just so shit all round isnt it.

My DS is only 3 days in, but its not been too bad so far. He is on a corridor with 11 others (all 1st years, mixture of subjects) and it sounds as though they are all being pretty sociable (DS has told me he needs to get a door stop as they are all leaving their doors open, so that tradition continues). They have a kitchenette, and have already agreed to contribute to some joint provisions. It is a catered option and apparently his corridor people are going down to meals together, and also bringing their food back up to their kitchenette and eating together there. I know he’s been out and had a beer at least once (was impressed that he was going out for one early evening Sunday a mere 2 hours after DH left him) and is really pleased that his room is v central on campus and right next to the bar, supermarket etc. He’s done a couple of online lectures, chosen his modules and has an appointment set up with his academic tutor.

Of course the alternative is not the “more fun” time he should be having, but the reality of being in his bedroom with no purpose for another 12 months. He worked over the summer but his job is leisure/tourism related so is pretty much done now. Pre-Covid he was going to have a year out before University but we all agreed that getting on with something and making the best of it was the right choice for him. I’m cautiously optimistic that he will have some sort of experience of being away from home and launching, even though its going to be an odd one, and that it will be better than being stuck at home without any forward momentum. I guess we are also lucky that we are about an hour and a half away door to door by v regular public transport so if it does get sticky or dull DS can get home fairly cheaply and easily, either for a couple of days, or an early finish to term or whatever. Just knowing that I think makes him feel relaxed.

I am sorry for those of you with DC with difficult living arrangements. That sucks and it seems to be a complete lottery. Hope things get better.

My DD is doing online from home. There's no contact, online or otherwise, and her social circle has disappeared for obvious reasons. I'm glad I'm available to support her but worry about long term isolation.

I agree with that too. I’d give my right arm to do f2f teaching at the moment. I am offering personal tutor sessions on campus and have had a few takers, but not from First Year. The ones I’ve spoken to say they are OK and like their accommodation, but some just say that to be polite.

I can't see a way we can make the university experience ok this year. I just can't. Face to face is bizarre, masks, can't hear what people are saying let alone recognize them, and quite a lot of students don't want to come in anyway, they are opting out or quarantining or are ill and some had said they don't want to come in because of the level change today. Online, if done well, is actually better than socially distanced learning where you can't have proper discussions.

Agree with this. Mask-to-mask teaching with students spread out is much worse quality than online in the humanities. Discussion is impossible in this situation. Participants are simply not audible, but we are having to go through this ridiculous charade so that our universities can pretend it’s business as usual. If they were honest (and hadn’t been refused a government bailout) they would have told students that while f2f seminars are better than online in normal circumstances, that is absolutely not the case when masks and distancing are required.

@AgileLass

2 out of 650 students turned up to online drop-in sessions I put on this week and last week, to discuss questions or concerns about teaching before the semester starts.

I wonder what those students are telling their parents about what the university is/isn’t offering them.

Not saying this is the case with yours, but the university world can be totally bewildering to those not used to it - some of this stuff is so poorly signposted! My DH is studying for an MSc whilst working full time, so he was going to be distance learning anyway but he has found the whole thing a nightmare. He has a high powered position in his job so he certainly isn't stupid, but he frequently can't find how to access something that he has seen promoted, or only finds out about something after it has happened. He's finding the online library access impossible (and I work for another university's library service ) and just generally spends most of his day getting more irate and confused. I know universitys have had to make up so much stuff so fast (like I say, I work for a Uni) but I don't think student absence is always down to unwillingness. Plus in normal life, from my experience, lack of attendance was usually hangover related... Which is less the case currently!

I feel so sorry for our Freshers. Uni was the classic 'best time of my life' , met some of my best friends and just had an amazing time. But it was hard to start with and very lonely at times - and that was with huge amount did social stuff going on.

And f2f teaching no fun when it’s cold! We have been told that even in Nov we must have windows fully open and wear warm clothes! So when I say I’d give my right arm for f2f, I mean in normal circumstances!

All mine have finished uni and I’m glad for them that they don’t have to go through this. I Feel so very sorry for all the current students (and their parents!). It’s awful and I can’t see that that it’s going to get better anytime soon.

I imagine a lot of 17 and 18 years were pretty desperate to leave home after the last six months.

I hear you Lurchermom. But in this case all they had to do was click the link in the email. Of course as we know, many students don’t even read their emails properly (or at all)...

Those I know who were due to start Uni this year have deferred. Seems like a good decision going from the above comments.

I think societies are trying, but everything has to be online, and I think some SUs aren't being very helpful.

I'm part of a music society I adore, and have been on the committee for, and it was always a really nice time out of my week. This term, we'll have film nights, quiz nights, record yourself playing and it will be stitched together. But we just can't do any ensemble playing, which is sort of the point — socials are usually fun extras, not all you can do.

Being honest, there are some societies where you have absolutely no chance of actually doing the focus of the society this term. And the SU (here at least) haven't admitted that.