Studying from home

Very soon after, the university confirmed that the rest of the academic year would be online, and thus I found myself finishing my third year from home. Having been accustomed to the fast-paced environment of a Cambridge term, this did come as somewhat of a shock - suddenly I was supposed to do this same work from a home environment, which turned out much more difficult than I’d have anticipated.

There were multiple reasons for this. The university introduced a safety net, which meant that our grades this year couldn’t drop below what we achieved last year. This took the pressure off, for which I’m very grateful, but it also made it hard to take studying under these circumstances seriously. I think that this, combined with a lack of solid daily routine were the main contributors. Having to do other things during the day introduces “mirco-deadlines” for work, but without these, everything just drags on forever. This did make me realise the value in being accountable to things like going to lectures on time, attending supervisions, and even just having other students around you doing the same thing.

However after what seemed like ages and also no time at all, I was done with my dissertation and exams. This is not the end of third year that I envisaged, but I realise things could’ve been much worse. I am also grateful that I still have my fourth year ahead of me, so there is a chance I will have a more “normal” final year, as I realise many of my peers won’t. But at this stage, as ever, it is way too early to tell what the 2020/21 academic year will look like, so I guess I will just have to wait and see what surprises are still to come.