Attending university in the midst of a pandemic is definitely not what anyone expected when preparing for this part of their life, I know I definitely did not. I am sure that everyone has experienced some form of restricted or adjusted schooling due to this pandemic, and it can feel very inconvenient or unmotivating. I understand there are also many students who perhaps have thrived in the adjustments that came in response to the pandemic, those who prefer to sit at home or in a comfortable space in front of their laptops instead of at a desk in a classroom surrounded by others. Those who prefer to have posts from their teachers and professors, who teach them through more unstructured and unscheduled instead of a more structured and in-person formats. There may also be students who work best with a mix of the two, and I, Jada Rawlins, a third-year student here at Mount Allison, am one of those people. Here at Mount Allison we have experienced education in all three versions for quite some time now, bringing to our attention that we cannot predict our university experience and, although hopefully we return to some form of normalcy soon, there is a possibility that anything can happen that can affect the style of education we receive.  

 Despite our differences in what we may prefer as students and how we receive our form of education, we can all agree that being stuck within one, usually small and enclosed place can be tiring, frustrating, and have effects on our attention span and work quality. Especially when living in university residence and being mostly limited to the entirety of your dorm room as a classroom 24/7, or you do not have transportation that can allow you to leave the town to explore and work in other environments therefore you feel restricted to one’s living space, can be extremely difficult and disheartening. Therefore, this post is to provide a list of places in Sackville that are great changes of environment and can better suit your needs as study/ work spaces and classrooms for when you need a break from your own room, residence, or home when in Sackville. There will also be descriptions of each location provided with their attributes that create a nice and fresh work environment. This information can still be useful to simply complete assignments when we are no longer subject to the education restrictions and constant adjustments caused by this pandemic! All locations mentioned below are of reasonable walking distance therefore accessible no matter the weather, unless closed due to severe weather. All establishments stated also welcome students to do work regardless of making a purchase, just showing how much this town supports the students at Mount Allison University! 

I hope this post helped you find some new ideas on where to socialize, study, or simply get a break from the common view that is your dorm rooms/homes, I know every single one of these locations helped me thrive in my studies! The image above is of one of the beautiful seating areas within Cranewood Bakery.