This semester’s Zoom set-up. Photo credit: Teresa Brown.
In September I wrote a blog post on my first impressions of Zoom school. It has now been over a year since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and I have taken nine classes over Zoom. As my senior year rapidly approaches its final days, I wanted to take some time to reflect on this final year.
Having to complete my final year of undergrad in a virtual format wasn’t something I had ever even considered as a possibility. Being 2,895 miles away from campus, waking up for a 5:40am class because of the time difference, and having to mute/unmute myself to speak in class were all things I suddenly found myself forced to adapt to. Fortunately, I have been able to return to New York City this spring and, while classes are still entirely virtual, being near campus has helped make senior year feel a little more normal.
One evening this month I was sitting out on the steps of Low Library with my roommates. I felt a wave of sadness as I thought about everything I had missed this year. All of the acquaintances from classes I never crossed paths with because I couldn’t sit next to them in class, the events that students groups weren’t able to host, and even just the simple feeling of walking across campus between classes and bumping into a friend.
I let myself wallow in my sorrow for a few moments. All of these feelings were and are real, and it would be silly to pretend they’re not. Then, I asked myself, “Did I really meet zero new people this year and attend zero events?” And, of course, the answer is no!
In fact, I made two really good friends in a math class I took last semester. We formed a Zoom study group, met every few weeks to study, and have since been able to safely connect in person now that we’re all in New York. I also made friends with my thesis class. A small group of 9, we organized extra Zoom meetings to discuss our work but also just to hang out with each other. And, I participated in an entire virtual theater production last semester.
I even have a friend that I made a year before the pandemic, but who I didn’t become close with until last spring. Now we text almost every day and talk on the phone weekly, despite not having seen each other in person in over a year and a half.
All this is to say that, while of course there are many things that we all missed out on this year, it is more than possible to connect with people in a virtual format. Whether that looks like joining a club where the meetings inevitably turn from club related updates to social hour, reaching out to folks in your classes to set up Zoom study groups, or reconnecting with an old friend with a quick phone call, making and maintaining friendships virtually can happen.
I am hopeful that, as the pandemic subsides and we are able to socialize in person once again, the connections I made over Zoom will only get stronger. And, I am confident that being able to make and maintain connections virtually in addition to in person will only be an asset in the future.