Sean Marks: The In-Person Experience
After a year and a half of zoom university, we are finally back on campus. Like many other students, I was extremely curious as to how life would be back when trying to return back to normal. It’s currently a bit of a hybrid model – some classes are online while most of the classes are in-person. However, all in-person classes are equipped with class recording allowing any student to watch lectures asynchronously. It’s been extremely refreshing seeing my peers in person and engaging in live, in-person discussions.
One amazing benefit of in-person classes is the professor-student interactions. Nothing has been more helpful to me during my time here than my conversations with my professors. They are extremely willing and available to talk about class performance, future endeavors, and any other burning questions that you may have as a college student. Virtual classes made it extremely difficult for students and professors to connect on a deeper, more personal level. Now that we are back on campus, it has been much easier to get to know my professors which overall has been extremely helpful in terms of my academic performance.
Aside from academics, Santa Clara has always been extremely active in hosting a large number of community events including live music and theatre performances, networking sessions, community activities, and a variety of other events and activities. At first, I thought that the strict Covid protocols would make the assimilation back to campus a little unsteady, but it feels like many students are ready to go back to a pre-covid lifestyle.
While there are still many hurdles and obstacles that we must tackle every day during this time of the pandemic, the Santa Clara community has come together strongly in support of one another. While college is a place to learn and grow yourself, it’s also just as important to build connections and create a community of your own. Although the zoom university put a hindrance to this, the student body along with the faculty and staff of SCU have made tremendous strides in bringing us back together.