The new coronavirus that causes the respiratory disease better known as COVID-19 has put a halt to countless lives and plans, and those of college students are not the exception.
A report titled “Impact of Coronavirus on Student’s Academic Progress and College Plans” received survey responses from 75,791 high school and college students as well as parents to gauge the impact the global pandemic is having on them.
According to the report, college students, especially those in graduate programs, feel positively about how their college is handling the crisis. However, more than 93% reported issues affording their education.
Oscar Zuniga Jr., a UTEP student majoring in criminal justice with a minor in psychology, said that this pandemic has helped him understand quite a few things in life, improve his level of patience and has affected him academically.
“This whole situation about online classes affects me with my learning process because I comprehend things, even more, when I’m in (face-to-face) class than online, and I also learn the different opinions of other students,” Zuniga said. “I feel that the online method is slower because teachers take so long to answer a question I have. The positive thing about this pandemic situation is that we spend more time with our pets, we appreciate our things more, it helps us quite a bit to increase our level of patience, and in a way, we help nature to recover what it had lost.”
According to the report, 65% felt their college is handling the crisis well; specifically, 61% for public 4-year undergraduate colleges. The study also showed that only 15% of students find online classes as effective as in-person. And that 74% have sufficient access to technology or internet.
Sofia Felix, an undergraduate student majoring in physics at UTEP said, “This pandemic has brought some positive things for me and some negative. To my studies, I think that I am glad that faculty helped me a lot because a majority of the classes that I signed up for this semester were labs and other hands-on courses. All of them were transferred to online classes and the professors gave streaming videos of the sites in the field, completing online lab assignments or watching videos related to the subject. They are comprehensive and adapt in a perfection to the situation.”
Like Felix, the study shows 66% feel supported by faculty and administrators.
Consequences of this pandemic will continue appearing and students will continue being affected, but according to the statistics, public and private institutions are helping them proceed with receiving their education.
Maria Salette Ontiveros may be reached at [email protected]
