Ashton Schultz, left, Cassey Nail, center, and Krissy Houge, right, pose by the We Are statue in State College before the All-U Day football game.
Ashton Schultz
Freshman, Business
Hopewell Township, PA
Posted May 11, 2020
Remote online classes have been in effect for basically a month now and my second semester of college is coming to an end. My freshman year of college has had its ups and downs, but through it all, I have made amazing friends and made so many fun memories. Even though I do not get to see my friends now every day on campus, we have all gotten together on Zoom to talk and see each other’s faces.
Being cooped up in the house all day, I have found that taking a drive and listening to music really helps clear my head and takes away all the stress. My workload for school seems to be a bit more time consuming since we moved remotely, so I always have to plan out my days.
The biggest challenge for me is that with being remote you have to have a good internet connection for classes. In my house, there are four of us using the internet all day working and taking classes, in a place where we get a very poor internet connection. This makes my classes difficult because sometimes things will lag, making it difficult to follow along.
One thing that is nice though is that some of my professors have been sharing their class notes and even recording our classes. This gives me the ability to go back and see anything I might have missed and also be able to relook at our classes.
Being remote has been a big change, but in all honesty it has been a good learning experience. I can’t wait to step foot on the campus in August and see all my friends and professors. I used to never want to go to school, but now I can’t wait to be back.
Posted April 23, 2020
Remote learning is a new experience for a lot of us. Depending on your schedule and the types of classes you’re taking, the transition was either smooth or a bit hard.
Being a more visual, verbal, physical learner, this has been a bit more of a challenge for me. The professors, though, have been helping me through any complications that have come with the new online classes.
Being a social butterfly, the hardest thing is not seeing my friends every day at the campus. Sitting down for lunch in the Bistro, going to the mall, even just going to the gym to work out has all been taken away for the time being.
This transition has been rough not just for me but also on my friendships. We have been staying in touch with FaceTime calls, texting, and of course, Snapchatting every day so we never lose touch.
In college, you always hear time management mentioned. Well, let me tell you, it’s ten times harder when you’re not waking up every morning to get ready and drive to class. Some classes give you a week to complete all the assignments. In other classes you have Zoom meetings during your regular class time. I have learned that planning out when to do my assignments for the whole week keeps me on track.
For me, this was kind of a blessing. Next semester I am taking online classes for my major, and I wasn’t sure what to expect. Now that I’m getting my feet wet, I don’t have to be as stressed about what they will be like.
Being a freshman in college, this sudden change has been a stressful roller coaster. But overall, it has been a good learning experience.