Morning Classes In Winter

   Samudraki's Saturdays

The Netherlands just witnessed a record breaking frost with sub-zero temperatures a few weeks ago. Alongside that, I just started my online university. Here's my experience on the first few weeks back to university life and starting masters in the winter! 

Let me start this blog by saying that I never experienced online university when the whole world went into a lockdown, because by then I was done with all my exams and only had my thesis left to finish, which got switched into a theoretical research paper instead of a practical research paper. I was bummed because I got the topic of my dreams but I couldn't physically go to the lab and make a perfume, only in theory.  

Expectations out of online university 

So a month before starting university, I was frantically texting my old classmates and asking them about their experiences with online university and any tips to survive the first week. The main advice I received was to treat online university as if it were regular university and not join classes in my PJs and at the comfort of my bed. I also expected that with online university we will have our cameras on but I had to remember to keep myself on mute after hearing funny stories from friends who attended class while they were having breakfast or brushing their teeth! Lastly, I expected that I would get to make alot of friends even though online, which would reduce the loneliness and give me an excuse to get out of the house. 

What actually happened? 

First things first, my first week of online lectures got cancelled due to a snow storm and poor internet connectivity all across the country. Since I joined mid-way (Winter Semester Intake) I did not know who my classmates were and the introductions got cancelled due to a rise in the cases in The Netherlands. I emailed professors asking them to put me in a group, but for some courses it worked and for others it didn't so I experienced some delay in starting my group-work assignments. My first online class was quite an interesting experience because I was having some minor teething problems with the online portal being used for the lectures, but by the end of the week I got a hand of it. I did experience some funny incidents in class such as hearing music from Tik Tok videos being played by a student who forgot to mute themselves, the professors being too close to the screen and asking if we can see them and I personally was cooking lunch during one of my lectures and was covered in pasta sauce! Thank god we are not allowed to keep our videos on or that would have been quite the sight. The first few weeks were relatively relaxed, a bit too relaxed if you ask me. However, once the lectures started and the assignments started coming in I found myself to be very busy, but not stressed, which is a great start compared to my bachelor's. I am excited to see how my masters journey continues and I will write another blog at the end of this semester to see how much I have changed! Hopefully by then I will make some new friends and my group mates won't disappear after the course is over.

My highlights of the week 

I decided that for my masters I will consciously make an effort to remain stress-free as I study because I don't want my mental health to get affected the way it did in my bachelors which caused me to lose friends and lower my grades. That's why the weekends I take out for myself by enjoying 'me-time' with at home spa, connect with my family over video call and chat for hours, catch up with friends in the city and explore new pockets in the city by going on walks. This past week I played in the snow and walked on a frozen canal. I also enjoyed my solo birthday party by baking a cake and getting all dolled up for just me, myself and I! 

My lowlights of the week 

I faced quite a few teething problems and felt extremely lost and lonely with the start of online university, but I am slowly getting a hang of it. My landlord cut my internet instead of fixing it after repeatedly complaining so I had to take my laptop with me on the days I go to campus to work, causing me to be extremely busy and go slightly off my daily agenda. The snowstorm blocked my main door for a couple of days so staying indoors and not going outside for my daily walks around town was quite gloomy.

How has your experience with online university been? If you have any tips for a newbie like me please let me know in the comments down below! 

 

XO, Samudraki