While the pandemic’s effects on schooling may have faded into the not-so-distant past here on-island, Caymanian students overseas are still dealing with restrictions. Whether social distancing, the inability to get home, or attending university virtually from Cayman, here are three students’ experiences:
NAME: Arin Broderick
AGE: 21
UNIVERSITY: Boston University
DEGREE: Bachelor’s in health science
WHAT WAS YOUR COLLEGE EXPERIENCE LIKE BEFORE THE PANDEMIC HIT?
My time on campus seemed pretty normal – with typical things like getting to lectures, gathering with friends around campus and exploring the city. Losing the ease of walking around campus or being able to go see a friend or professor without concern of being infected or infecting others is something
none of us could have imagined.
HOW HAS THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AFFECTED YOUR STUDIES?
Ironically, right before schools started shutting down, I was finishing up working at a clinic on-island and was not in-person for classes in Boston. I was excited to be back on campus after time away, and maybe my timing was off because it was just then that schools all over were shutting down, students being sent home and Cayman had just entered lockdown.
Given the train-wreck of events that have unfolded in the last year, in addition to heightened polarity in the US, I was relieved that my university put in place as many safety protocols for on-campus students as they did. It made my decision to go back in-person a lot easier. Essentially, the university decided to offer a hybrid learning approach, where you can attend both in person and/or online, while also allowing high-risk faculty the option to hold their classes fully remotely.
Over the lockdown this past summer I had to take one of my human physiology labs online and even though it worked out great, it was definitely strange doing it in my living room over Zoom instead of the lab.
I decided to be back on campus this past fall because I felt that I’d benefit most being in the learning environment on campus. Being my last year with my freshman class, I wanted to make the most out of the time left.
The social aspect of campus has been drastically different, not just because of social distancing and other protocols but also because we all had to think cautiously about everything we did, where we went and who we saw. I think there was a lot of social anxiety at first with a lot of people that my close friends and I didn’t know very well, not knowing how careful or careless others had been regarding COVID-19 protocols.
It helped that the school had been doing regular screenings of every person on campus around two to three times a week. It seemed like a lot at first, but after a while it just became part of a weird, but new normal routine on campus.
NAME: Katie Klein
AGE: 21
UNIVERSITY: Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia
DEGREE: Bachelor of commerce with a major in marketing
WHAT WAS YOUR COLLEGE EXPERIENCE LIKE BEFORE THE PANDEMIC HIT?
My university experience was a lot different prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. For one, I was going to university and living in Canada on my own along with five of my close friends, which was such a great experience. Additionally, I was able to enjoy the university social experiences a lot more than I am able to now.
HOW HAS THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AFFECTED YOUR STUDIES?
The COVID-19 pandemic has led my university to close all physical lessons, which means all classes are being held virtually. I have been home in Cayman since March of last year and continue to undergo my studies here. I plan on returning to Canada when the time is right, however classes will continue online for the remainder of my last year.
The social aspects of uni’ life are probably the biggest area in which my overall experience this past year has been affected. I was used to socialising almost all of my days, as I was not only living with five of my closest friends but also going to school with them, too. Additionally, it has been a big learning shift for me as I tend to work better with in-person classes, so being away from uni’ has been quite a big change for me overall.
NAME: Danny Link
AGE: 20
UNIVERSITY: University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
DEGREE: Bachelor of commerce, majoring in tourism and minoring in marketing
WHAT WAS YOUR COLLEGE EXPERIENCE LIKE BEFORE THE PANDEMIC HIT?
My university experience before the pandemic hit was relatively short. Our academic year does not start until February and with lockdown starting at the end of March. I only had a month post-COVID-19 shutdowns. However, this being said, my experience was so (much) fun, and I am very grateful for the opportunity to study overseas and meet new people from different backgrounds.
HOW HAS THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AFFECTED YOUR STUDIES?
Much like Cayman, we are very lucky in New Zealand to have beaten COVID-19 very early on so it has not affected my university studies at all, and I am still able to attend in-person lectures, social events and sporting events. That being said, COVID has made it a lot harder to travel home over my breaks. I was lucky enough to get home for my past summer break (November to March) but had to quarantine for two weeks both ways which is 100% worth it to come out to no restrictions. I don’t think I will be returning home until COVID restrictions lighten as I do not want to risk not being able to return to New Zealand to continue my studies as there is currently a six-month wait to get into the country.
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