How to Make the Most of the School Year Under COVID-19 at Mt. A
Author: Anna Hardie
Posted on September 15, 2020
University is a place where students can have huge learning opportunities both inside and outside the classroom. One of the most important experiences at University is all the different people you meet and getting involved within the community. With COVID-19, the 2020 Fall school semester looks very different from past years. Experiences that were once possible are now not. However, there are some interesting upturns to learning on Teams and ways in which students can still have a wholesome university experience during this COVID period. For example, there are many things students can do like go to office hours (virtually), join school clubs, and discover the secret corners of Sackville. The Mount Allison experience is definitely different from previous years but not necessarily worse.
Here are 6 tips on how to make the most of your Mount Allison experience while also staying safe:
1. Discover the secret corners of Sackville.
Sackville has some pretty cool places to explore. On the weekends, Broken Bridge is a great place to walk to and enjoy the Tintamarre marsh landscape. It’s also a great place for pictures with friends during golden hour. The Blue Trail is also a nice place to walk down on weekends. The trail leads to Silver Lake Park where you can swim as well.
2. Don't hesitate to go to your professor's office hours even if they are virtual.
Your professors are there to help you learn and if there is something you don’t understand after some reviewing, send a quick email to your prof just like you would as if COVID was not happening. Talking to your professors is an important part of the university experience.
3. Use COVID as a time to really focus on your studies and dive deeper into the class material.
With COVID it may be possible that students have more time to study on their own due to limited in-person and communal/group activities. This year might be the time to really allow yourself to focus on your studies and dive deeper into class material than you usually would. Having a nice GPA definitely doesn’t hurt! The library is also open to students for studying(as long as you book a seat through the library website) and also has an incredible selection of books to enrich your education.
4. Submit an article to the Argosy (Mt.A's newspaper).
Something I didn’t know in my first year was that, you don’t necessarily have to be part of the school newspaper to be able to submit and get your article published in the paper. Writing an article is a self-isolated activity for the most part and therefore you might feel gratified to have an article or two published in the paper this semester. It’s critical to get your word out there and writing is definitely a way to better formulate your thoughts to better understand your values.
5. Join school clubs!
The Clubs and Societies fair is happening again this year with opportunities for students to get involved in the community and meet new people. Some clubs are virtual and some are in-person, but regardless you can still get hands-on in the community and talk to other students. Even if you forget to go to the club or society fair on September 13th, shoot a message to the club head and you will likely still be able to join!
6. Find a walking or running buddy through Waterfowl Park.
There are a lot of things students can do despite limited social opportunities under COVID. While there are a few more limitations on what students can and can’t do compared to the previous year, it is easy to just see the limitations and not all the possibilities that are available this semester. More than anything, making the most under COVID is about mindset and seizing the opportunities that currently exist(which are quite plentiful). We’re all in this together and with safety precautions in mind, I hope you are able to enjoy your experience at Mt. A!
Anna Hardie
Contact us
Campus visits
E-mail: campusvisit@mta.ca
Tel: (506) 364-2257
Location
Wallace McCain Student Centre (2nd floor)
62 York St. Sackville, NB