In the effort to do my part and make safe decisions for me, my family, my clients, and the greater population, I too have been impacted by travel and gathering restrictions during the pandemic.
One effect I am definitely feeling is my dedication to visiting at least 20 campuses every year in order to learn the latest, meet the staff, and get a general vibe that really only comes from “boots on the ground,” which has been definitely hampered in 2020. So in order to continue staying on top of the ever-changing landscape of higher education, I have had to get creative.
In addition to participating in virtual counselor events, webinars, tours, and other virtual offerings, I have also reached out to some of my students to get their first hand account of college life during COVID-19.
Below is a virtual interview with a 2020 graduate of Grant High School in Portland who is studying Applied Math in the honors program at Tulane…
What’s your favorite class? Why?
So far, my favorite class is probably English 1010. It’s definitely been a challenge so far but I’m really proud of the work I’m producing and I like the teacher.
What are the dorms like? Food?
Being in the honors dorm, I’m pretty lucky as far as overall quality. Everything in our dorm is very new and on top of that we share bathrooms with only two other people which none of the freshmen get, so that’s one of the biggest advantages. The food is pretty good, the meat is almost always overcooked, but I’ve been here long enough to figure out what actually tastes good vs just appearance. It can get a little repetitive though.
How have you done so far finding “your people?”
In the honors dorm, I have found an awesome group of people. All big sports fanatics who are all super sweet and always there to have fun and support me. I am excited to meet a lot more people but I’ve definitely found a good starting place with people that I care about.
Tips to make moving to college easier?
There’s really nothing I can think of to make it easier. I would say just try to find people to be with and adjust with. It’s going to be difficult no matter what and the sooner you accept that and just try to move forward and adjust, I think the better it will go.
What do you do on the weekends?
Weekends are always a lot of fun. I usually spend Friday afternoon enjoying myself with people, just out in the sun relaxing and winding down from the week. Then Saturday I spend doing as much homework as possible to free up Saturday nights as well as Sunday so I can then watch football all Sunday.
What’s it like around your school (on campus and in the neighborhood)?
Well, Tulane is kind of notorious for the Tulane bubble. Essentially there’s just certain areas where everyone goes and hangs out and stays and as much as people want to break that, it’s just extremely difficult without the necessary funds, transportation, etc. This sucks because New Orleans is such a cool city and I want to explore but it’s extremely difficult to be able to do that.
What have you loved so far?
So far, the thing I’ve loved most is definitely the people and the independence. I’m free to make all the mistakes and decisions I want and this is liberating. I learn a lot from them. Then also, the people I’ve met are just all super fun, easy going, and really enjoyable to be friends with.
What aren’t you loving?
The thing I’m loving the least is most definitely my Great Books class. Just too much reading, not enough learning and teaching by the teacher, and then bs essays that are self graded so it’s difficult to want to try.
Anything else about Tulane I should know?
One more thing you should know is the fact that I’m just happy to be on campus and have some semblance of in-person classes and normalcy during this time. Tulane is doing a relatively good job with testing and restrictions and everything and I consider myself lucky to be here while others are stuck at home doing online classes and what not.
Check out more about Tulane here!
