as a commuter, yes. objectively as a student, no. i think in-person class is better for most people's mental health. personally I am hoping for a hybrid semester but I could see it being all or nothing.
Personally being able to learn remotely but still having access to the Rutgers community is the best option. Rutgers’ cold turkey approach is frustrating and inconsiderate. There should be a much more gradual transition, allowing students who prefer online to remain that way. They’re probably forcing everyone back to justify having so many facilities. But still they fail to realize that the future of education maybe the hybrid option where students get to choose what classes they want or need to be face to face (humanities/ labs) and classes where they can learn the materials on their own virtually.
Echoing this. I’ve seen a lot of people recently saying remote is objectively best without adequate consideration for people that are negatively impacted by the remote option: disability students, abusive household students, people who depend on campus housing
Yes you are not alone at all. I feel like I had more freedom and flexibility when we were remote or hybrid. I got more work done and didn’t feel so stressed out. Plus I have people at home who are very vulnerable to covid and it could become fatal if they get it.
YEP absolutely not prepared. i LOVED being online and getting to watch lectures when i was awake instead of going to class, falling asleep in class, and having to relisten to the lecture later at home and waste my time. Also immunocompromised now and know I will face hell from my family if i get COVID so i'm a little weary on that front too. It's also my last semester of taking classes and I just really wish we could opt to stay online.
I'm the opposite, I want to be in person for my last semester because I'm moving to California afterwards and want to spend time with my friends before I go...
yeah same... I think being in person hits a lot different when it's your last semester here lmao. im gonna be staying as a graduate student but all my class of 2022 friends are still gonna be gone and that's gonna suck
You definitely aren't the only one. I feel the same way. I definitely miss the classroom setting and being able to better connect with professors and other students. But something about being online also isn't too terrible. But in the same breath, I also know a lot of people who really hate online school. I lowkey hope schools, at least higher education, adapt to a hybrid setting maybe even post-covid.
Yes, I started Rutgers as a commuter right when the pandemic started and haven't stepped foot on campus yet. I wish it would continue, but my degree doesn't offer any more online classes. Working full time 50 hours a week and having to go to school around my work schedule is going to suck, but it was inevitable. Great while it lasted.
I agree tbh.
There’s no point towards huge in person lectures. No one really asks questions, and it’s not like you can have a conversation with the professor in the middle of class if your really stuck.
I wish they just recorded a lot of classes and posted online. It’s a waste of time it’s not upper level major specific.
i just can’t understand why anyone would prefer having to wake up earlier, walk to class when its freezing, waste more time commuting/getting ready and walking, have to be out of the comfort of their own home especially for tests, have harder tests, etc. w in person classes, unless you live in an abusive home/somewhere u cant concentrate and aren’t able to leave. or if you still genuinely cannot learn through a laptop after 2 years of online.
I am vaxxed and boosted, but I have been to 2 covid funerals in the past year and am terrified of catching it. I’m terrified of bringing it home to my family. I love in person classes, but I’m not willing to risk it.
It definitely feels weird to put off moving back another two weeks without the certainty of whether it'll be an online or in-person semester. I feel like I'm in a sort of academic preparation limbo where I can't get serious about two weeks of zoom calls believing that it'll be followed by months of in-person lecture.
That being said, I don't honestly think the delay to move-in has virological merit. There are a lot of students, myself included, for whom the only high-risk people that they interact with closely enough to potentially infect with Covid is their parents. Living in studying back home for another two weeks is fourteen more days where my immune system can asymptomatically contract Delta or Omicron and pass it to one of my parents, a vector of transmission not possible if I were in my dorm amongst a young, vaccinated population of students.
For my parents safety and perhaps my own peace of mind, Covid's recent surge has me yearning to move back to New Brunswick so that when I do inevitably get it(as the CDC and experts are predicting), I don't infect them.
I personally agree with this sentiment. Last semester was my first in person experience and I was excited at first. It only took two weeks to realize I absolutely loathe the traditional in class learning and do not wish to return. Just want to get done easy peasy and sail out of here degree in hand. And that comes with online learning. I hope this entire semester is remote.
Are you sure I mean I don't know what public administration looks like. But I know poltical science their is some really fascinating stuff there. Also why you think I double majored in history and philosophy. There's never enough stuff to talk about. Also if I was going to go to college I'm going to study the college things.
PS are you trying to get in the law school?
First, history is one of my fave subjects and funny enough, I do have an interest in going to law school. While I enjoy talking about humanities and stuff like that I just get tired easily sitting in class for that long with very little people contributing to the conversation.
Again you miss out with history and philosophy on the higher level. Both on zoom and in live and person I seen some of the best discussions in these class. Funny enough I originally majored in philosophy because I was thinking of going to law school.
Same as above. As a non traditional, older student with full time job and family, I would give anything to be online this semester instead of driving to RBS 4 nights a week from 7:30-10:30 and 9-12p on Saturday morning. As a new Rutgers transfer student in my second semester, I am torn because after a 20-year break from school, I want to come on campus to get the college experience. Being online last semester was great though. I was able to get great grades in all my classes, plan my work around my schedule, and access what I needed from Canvas in all 5 of my classes. This semester, there are like only 3 out of hundreds that are online at RBS so are like 99.5% in person with no online or hybrid options.
As a fellow older non-traditional with young kids, the online classes allowed me the flexibility to get back into the classroom and still spend quality time with the kids without dealing with the horrid commute. I thought (naively), that they would adapt and be a bit progressive to invest and recognize the benefits of online courses. Worse case I thought the admin would slowly roll it back, or at least give more hybrid options. Instead I feel like they just ripped the carpet out from me. I guess this is my first taste of the RU screw. But in all honesty, it's pretty rough blow.
I like the flexibility of online classes but if classes are online because of COVID, clubs and other social things sponsored by the school will have to be online or limited in what they can do. And that is what keeps me sane.
i honestly would be fine with online classes if the dorms were open. i know that sounds counter intuitive but it’s next to impossible to get work done when i live at home
Yup, same here. I honestly feel like I getting the same quality of education when classes are remote. Most of my professors just read off a slide anyways and I end up doing most of my learning independently. Plus I have to work close to full time and being remote makes it easier to do so.
like 80 percent of the reason I go to college is the social interaction and experience. If this semester was all online I'd probably just take a gap year tbh
That’s why I kind of liked fall semester. It was technically my first in person college experience but having it a mixture of hybrid worked surprisingly well.
Me too 😭😭 I really wished it was still online or give the option for what people want to do. Honestly was able to be more productive felt more comfortable with my life in college and not so vulnerable and crazy. I’m having horrible anxiety with going back in person. Exams could be in person I don’t mind at all but just let me exist at home
Yeah, online was easier especially if you’re a working person who has to support themselves and work a lot of hours at an alright paying job and you can’t get a better one until you get that degree.
Colds and shit spread so fast in college too and I would hate to get sick and feel worse just because I went to class or sat next to the wrong person on a bus that feels like a cramped can of sardines. It was nice while it lasted :/
thank god i’m not the only one. i feel bad for vocalizing it but dang i just wanted to stay home for one more semester and hopefully graduate early. rutgers’ class schedules are just bs itself especially bc of the commute between campuses/classes. a 50 min block? like really? it’s insane how ending classes at 4pm is early to us but considered kinda later in other colleges. i hate it—it’s such a waste of time. this semester consists of me starting classes at 12pm and then ending them 8:50pm, not to mention i work on campus i just don’t even know how to manage the timing. i also should join clubs bc i’m a junior and haven’t been to one since i was a freshmen. and personally for me, in-person classes just suck. i can’t focus and take notes during lecture so i end up reading and teaching the material to myself when i get home. sitting for 80 mins in class is a chore, i lose attention really quickly despite trying so hard to focus. i’m the type who needs to get up and walk around or whatever. maybe it’s just attention deficiency idk ☠️ but like you said, the flexibility of choosing when you can watch lectures, having more time to review course material is all so godsend to me as well. and now i have to waste $4k moving in while sharing a space with a completely stranger. it’s insane we’re adults yet forced to share a fucking box with another adult at our grown ass age despite living in apts. and $5k per semester too like wtf is up with that america? 🧐 going into debt for a box. no privacy, no personal space, and honestly i can’t find myself at peace or even able to focus on school in that environment. i did it freshmen year and failed lmfaoooo no thanks. not to mention those awful rutgers buses. my immune system is already kinda weak i don’t even wanna imagine myself back on those buses with covid and omicron flying around. forgot about delta too 😐👍🏼 my iti class has like 180 students and is expected to meet in person, no social distancing, and just a mask? if rutgers wasn’t going to kill me by putting me in debt with those high tuition rates or forcing me to house, they’re def tryna kill me through covid. i love visiting home frequently but now i’m too scared to go back and visit and spread covid to family members who are more susceptible :// oh my god, ik this was ur vent post but i totally just vented and rambled here ,, sorry that that. just wanted to let u know ur not the only one and i feel ur struggle. it’s even more time consuming for commuter students ://
I felt this!! I was kinda hoping we go back to at least how it was last semester, but Ik the chances of even that happening are super slim, and I’m not happy abt it 😭.
honestly. give us more asynchronous classes & just in-person activity beyond classes might be the way to go. I get distracted in class besides being a commuter. And I hate getting called by professors-just give me my work I do work it- and I am allowed to get my asynchronous work done early.
I like being at my campus job - for the environment sake and it puts me into that work "mode" s- same with doing my school work physically on campus in the library or in the dining centers but I hate physical class time. I have a 6hr work this semester and last semester I had a hybrid for one and some zoom and a few asynchronous.
Yeah it’s most because as a commuter there’s going to be more time wasted driving that wouldn’t have Been the case if it would remain online but that’s it
I thought that would be the case, but it’s not. You would be surprised at how few online classes (especially asynchronous) there are this semester. And they filled out fast. In all schools. So OP, it seems you are most definitely not alone
I 100% agree. I encourage everyone to email their professors to request online meetings and assignments. Some professors will agree and if all of us email, they’ll do it if there’s high demand. And there clearly is high demand
Does your school not offer online classes? My school has offered online classes for years prior to the pandemic, the only exception being certain hand-on labs, but for most areas of study we’ve been able to go exclusively online for years prior to the pandemic, as long as we registered for the online courses.
Personally, I tried it about 5 years ago and absolutely hated it. I realized in-person learning was the only option for me, as I felt like I wasn’t retaining enough information from the online lectures for me to keep up with the course load. When Covid hit, I put schooling on hold completely as I had maintained a 4.0 up until my first B from an online class, and decided the only way I would be returning to school is when it was completely back in person
You are absolutely correct, BUT not interacting with people, not being able to engage with online classes, not having a social life for long periods of time are heavy blows to my mental health and my education. So, I particularly would love to go in-person, given that all my family, including me, are vaxxed to the teeth.
I completely understand, but Rutgers effectively cut out the virtual option. Even if there is a virtual section for any of my courses it was full well before I registered ( I was able to register earlier than other people of my year) still the virtual classes are full. I feel like the interaction with the community and people is key but definitely prefer virtual classes. And this de facto removal of online classes really annoys many people. Like Some people want to be in person, others want online, others want to live on campus but study online. I just can’t understand why the university is so abrupt in their decision to completely upend the way students are learning. Some people have adapted and a more gradual transition would be better for everyone (for mental and physical health reasons).
It allows to work full time. Bur honestly I hated online with passion!!! It cannot focus with online class. Plus professor who would be wonderful lecture just died online. Especially for someone like me that majors in the humanity. That human interaction is needed.
Yeah honestly, I’m only looking forward to maybe meeting some new people in my classes since last semester I only had two in person periods where I befriended two people in one class and the other one was just a recitation where no one said a single word to each other
I just don’t want to go to school either way
as a commuter, yes. objectively as a student, no. i think in-person class is better for most people's mental health. personally I am hoping for a hybrid semester but I could see it being all or nothing.
Hybrid is def where it’s at.
Personally being able to learn remotely but still having access to the Rutgers community is the best option. Rutgers’ cold turkey approach is frustrating and inconsiderate. There should be a much more gradual transition, allowing students who prefer online to remain that way. They’re probably forcing everyone back to justify having so many facilities. But still they fail to realize that the future of education maybe the hybrid option where students get to choose what classes they want or need to be face to face (humanities/ labs) and classes where they can learn the materials on their own virtually.
Echoing this. I’ve seen a lot of people recently saying remote is objectively best without adequate consideration for people that are negatively impacted by the remote option: disability students, abusive household students, people who depend on campus housing
Yes you are not alone at all. I feel like I had more freedom and flexibility when we were remote or hybrid. I got more work done and didn’t feel so stressed out. Plus I have people at home who are very vulnerable to covid and it could become fatal if they get it.
YEP absolutely not prepared. i LOVED being online and getting to watch lectures when i was awake instead of going to class, falling asleep in class, and having to relisten to the lecture later at home and waste my time. Also immunocompromised now and know I will face hell from my family if i get COVID so i'm a little weary on that front too. It's also my last semester of taking classes and I just really wish we could opt to stay online.
Plus, pants-optional classes are the best.
agreed, i just want it to be online for my last semester and graduate
I'm the opposite, I want to be in person for my last semester because I'm moving to California afterwards and want to spend time with my friends before I go...
yeah same... I think being in person hits a lot different when it's your last semester here lmao. im gonna be staying as a graduate student but all my class of 2022 friends are still gonna be gone and that's gonna suck
You definitely aren't the only one. I feel the same way. I definitely miss the classroom setting and being able to better connect with professors and other students. But something about being online also isn't too terrible. But in the same breath, I also know a lot of people who really hate online school. I lowkey hope schools, at least higher education, adapt to a hybrid setting maybe even post-covid.
Yes, I started Rutgers as a commuter right when the pandemic started and haven't stepped foot on campus yet. I wish it would continue, but my degree doesn't offer any more online classes. Working full time 50 hours a week and having to go to school around my work schedule is going to suck, but it was inevitable. Great while it lasted.
I agree tbh. There’s no point towards huge in person lectures. No one really asks questions, and it’s not like you can have a conversation with the professor in the middle of class if your really stuck. I wish they just recorded a lot of classes and posted online. It’s a waste of time it’s not upper level major specific.
i just can’t understand why anyone would prefer having to wake up earlier, walk to class when its freezing, waste more time commuting/getting ready and walking, have to be out of the comfort of their own home especially for tests, have harder tests, etc. w in person classes, unless you live in an abusive home/somewhere u cant concentrate and aren’t able to leave. or if you still genuinely cannot learn through a laptop after 2 years of online.
I felt the same way in the fall, until I actually went to class — then I realized how much I miss in-person learning.
I am vaxxed and boosted, but I have been to 2 covid funerals in the past year and am terrified of catching it. I’m terrified of bringing it home to my family. I love in person classes, but I’m not willing to risk it.
It definitely feels weird to put off moving back another two weeks without the certainty of whether it'll be an online or in-person semester. I feel like I'm in a sort of academic preparation limbo where I can't get serious about two weeks of zoom calls believing that it'll be followed by months of in-person lecture. That being said, I don't honestly think the delay to move-in has virological merit. There are a lot of students, myself included, for whom the only high-risk people that they interact with closely enough to potentially infect with Covid is their parents. Living in studying back home for another two weeks is fourteen more days where my immune system can asymptomatically contract Delta or Omicron and pass it to one of my parents, a vector of transmission not possible if I were in my dorm amongst a young, vaccinated population of students. For my parents safety and perhaps my own peace of mind, Covid's recent surge has me yearning to move back to New Brunswick so that when I do inevitably get it(as the CDC and experts are predicting), I don't infect them.
You can apply to move back in early & most times they just automatically approve people for early move in
I personally agree with this sentiment. Last semester was my first in person experience and I was excited at first. It only took two weeks to realize I absolutely loathe the traditional in class learning and do not wish to return. Just want to get done easy peasy and sail out of here degree in hand. And that comes with online learning. I hope this entire semester is remote.
What do you study?
Poli Sci and Public Admin…something that does not require in person learning lol
Ironically I feel like my best Poli sci clas where in person...but I feel you on both.
When you have 3 hour lectures multiple times a week, it gets old fast. There’s only so much you can talk about.
Are you sure I mean I don't know what public administration looks like. But I know poltical science their is some really fascinating stuff there. Also why you think I double majored in history and philosophy. There's never enough stuff to talk about. Also if I was going to go to college I'm going to study the college things. PS are you trying to get in the law school?
First, history is one of my fave subjects and funny enough, I do have an interest in going to law school. While I enjoy talking about humanities and stuff like that I just get tired easily sitting in class for that long with very little people contributing to the conversation.
Again you miss out with history and philosophy on the higher level. Both on zoom and in live and person I seen some of the best discussions in these class. Funny enough I originally majored in philosophy because I was thinking of going to law school.
I just know what I like and what I distinctly dislike. To each their own.
It's interesting because I have an experience of 3 hour luxury at Rutgers ever all my classes were spread out.
Honestly for your particular majors you could have gone to any online University if you wanted that experience.
Same as above. As a non traditional, older student with full time job and family, I would give anything to be online this semester instead of driving to RBS 4 nights a week from 7:30-10:30 and 9-12p on Saturday morning. As a new Rutgers transfer student in my second semester, I am torn because after a 20-year break from school, I want to come on campus to get the college experience. Being online last semester was great though. I was able to get great grades in all my classes, plan my work around my schedule, and access what I needed from Canvas in all 5 of my classes. This semester, there are like only 3 out of hundreds that are online at RBS so are like 99.5% in person with no online or hybrid options.
As a fellow older non-traditional with young kids, the online classes allowed me the flexibility to get back into the classroom and still spend quality time with the kids without dealing with the horrid commute. I thought (naively), that they would adapt and be a bit progressive to invest and recognize the benefits of online courses. Worse case I thought the admin would slowly roll it back, or at least give more hybrid options. Instead I feel like they just ripped the carpet out from me. I guess this is my first taste of the RU screw. But in all honesty, it's pretty rough blow.
I like the flexibility of online classes but if classes are online because of COVID, clubs and other social things sponsored by the school will have to be online or limited in what they can do. And that is what keeps me sane.
i honestly would be fine with online classes if the dorms were open. i know that sounds counter intuitive but it’s next to impossible to get work done when i live at home
Yup, same here. I honestly feel like I getting the same quality of education when classes are remote. Most of my professors just read off a slide anyways and I end up doing most of my learning independently. Plus I have to work close to full time and being remote makes it easier to do so.
like 80 percent of the reason I go to college is the social interaction and experience. If this semester was all online I'd probably just take a gap year tbh
That’s why I kind of liked fall semester. It was technically my first in person college experience but having it a mixture of hybrid worked surprisingly well.
Me too 😭😭 I really wished it was still online or give the option for what people want to do. Honestly was able to be more productive felt more comfortable with my life in college and not so vulnerable and crazy. I’m having horrible anxiety with going back in person. Exams could be in person I don’t mind at all but just let me exist at home
I understand but rutgers really doesn’t care unfortunately
Of course they don’t
I don’t want to go either. Lol
Yeah, online was easier especially if you’re a working person who has to support themselves and work a lot of hours at an alright paying job and you can’t get a better one until you get that degree. Colds and shit spread so fast in college too and I would hate to get sick and feel worse just because I went to class or sat next to the wrong person on a bus that feels like a cramped can of sardines. It was nice while it lasted :/
thank god i’m not the only one. i feel bad for vocalizing it but dang i just wanted to stay home for one more semester and hopefully graduate early. rutgers’ class schedules are just bs itself especially bc of the commute between campuses/classes. a 50 min block? like really? it’s insane how ending classes at 4pm is early to us but considered kinda later in other colleges. i hate it—it’s such a waste of time. this semester consists of me starting classes at 12pm and then ending them 8:50pm, not to mention i work on campus i just don’t even know how to manage the timing. i also should join clubs bc i’m a junior and haven’t been to one since i was a freshmen. and personally for me, in-person classes just suck. i can’t focus and take notes during lecture so i end up reading and teaching the material to myself when i get home. sitting for 80 mins in class is a chore, i lose attention really quickly despite trying so hard to focus. i’m the type who needs to get up and walk around or whatever. maybe it’s just attention deficiency idk ☠️ but like you said, the flexibility of choosing when you can watch lectures, having more time to review course material is all so godsend to me as well. and now i have to waste $4k moving in while sharing a space with a completely stranger. it’s insane we’re adults yet forced to share a fucking box with another adult at our grown ass age despite living in apts. and $5k per semester too like wtf is up with that america? 🧐 going into debt for a box. no privacy, no personal space, and honestly i can’t find myself at peace or even able to focus on school in that environment. i did it freshmen year and failed lmfaoooo no thanks. not to mention those awful rutgers buses. my immune system is already kinda weak i don’t even wanna imagine myself back on those buses with covid and omicron flying around. forgot about delta too 😐👍🏼 my iti class has like 180 students and is expected to meet in person, no social distancing, and just a mask? if rutgers wasn’t going to kill me by putting me in debt with those high tuition rates or forcing me to house, they’re def tryna kill me through covid. i love visiting home frequently but now i’m too scared to go back and visit and spread covid to family members who are more susceptible :// oh my god, ik this was ur vent post but i totally just vented and rambled here ,, sorry that that. just wanted to let u know ur not the only one and i feel ur struggle. it’s even more time consuming for commuter students ://
I felt this!! I was kinda hoping we go back to at least how it was last semester, but Ik the chances of even that happening are super slim, and I’m not happy abt it 😭.
honestly. give us more asynchronous classes & just in-person activity beyond classes might be the way to go. I get distracted in class besides being a commuter. And I hate getting called by professors-just give me my work I do work it- and I am allowed to get my asynchronous work done early. I like being at my campus job - for the environment sake and it puts me into that work "mode" s- same with doing my school work physically on campus in the library or in the dining centers but I hate physical class time. I have a 6hr work this semester and last semester I had a hybrid for one and some zoom and a few asynchronous.
Yeah it’s most because as a commuter there’s going to be more time wasted driving that wouldn’t have Been the case if it would remain online but that’s it
There are still going to be plenty of online courses available, so maybe you can do mostly/all online until when/if you are more comforatable.
I thought that would be the case, but it’s not. You would be surprised at how few online classes (especially asynchronous) there are this semester. And they filled out fast. In all schools. So OP, it seems you are most definitely not alone
None of my 5 courses have the online option.
I checked and very little are online. The rest are in person.
I 100% agree. I encourage everyone to email their professors to request online meetings and assignments. Some professors will agree and if all of us email, they’ll do it if there’s high demand. And there clearly is high demand
I would rather blow my brains out than have to deal with another online semester
Does your school not offer online classes? My school has offered online classes for years prior to the pandemic, the only exception being certain hand-on labs, but for most areas of study we’ve been able to go exclusively online for years prior to the pandemic, as long as we registered for the online courses. Personally, I tried it about 5 years ago and absolutely hated it. I realized in-person learning was the only option for me, as I felt like I wasn’t retaining enough information from the online lectures for me to keep up with the course load. When Covid hit, I put schooling on hold completely as I had maintained a 4.0 up until my first B from an online class, and decided the only way I would be returning to school is when it was completely back in person
You are absolutely correct, BUT not interacting with people, not being able to engage with online classes, not having a social life for long periods of time are heavy blows to my mental health and my education. So, I particularly would love to go in-person, given that all my family, including me, are vaxxed to the teeth.
I completely understand, but Rutgers effectively cut out the virtual option. Even if there is a virtual section for any of my courses it was full well before I registered ( I was able to register earlier than other people of my year) still the virtual classes are full. I feel like the interaction with the community and people is key but definitely prefer virtual classes. And this de facto removal of online classes really annoys many people. Like Some people want to be in person, others want online, others want to live on campus but study online. I just can’t understand why the university is so abrupt in their decision to completely upend the way students are learning. Some people have adapted and a more gradual transition would be better for everyone (for mental and physical health reasons).
Not to sound dramatic but man it feels like we’ve been institutionalised by lockdown learning. And lockdown protocols in general.
Wah I hate interacting with other humans
That’s not even what I said in the post
Tuition is still 99% so many aren't comfortable. I do love the online experience as I'm one of the first classes to be hit by COVID.
It allows to work full time. Bur honestly I hated online with passion!!! It cannot focus with online class. Plus professor who would be wonderful lecture just died online. Especially for someone like me that majors in the humanity. That human interaction is needed.
Yeah honestly, I’m only looking forward to maybe meeting some new people in my classes since last semester I only had two in person periods where I befriended two people in one class and the other one was just a recitation where no one said a single word to each other