Studying Online at University…
…by Alexandra / from Scotland / studying Medicine / 2nd year
From my experience of last semester, there are certainly benefits to studying online. Online lectures mean you have more flexibility over when you choose to listen to the recordings, so you can schedule your study pattern around any other commitments. It is also really useful to be able to pause the recordings to make notes as you go along. This is great because some lecturers tend to race through the lecture content at top speed! With fewer trips to campus, another potential benefit is reduced transport costs and the chance to save some money without the temptation of buying that morning coffee before a 9am lecture.
While this flexibility is great, it’s important to have some kind of routine to your day, otherwise you can find yourself becoming less productive. What helped me last semester was to create a daily plan for each day, outlining what I aimed to do in the morning, afternoon and evening. It’s important to factor in time to exercise, relax and incorporate any (virtual) social activities into your day too.
Last semester, my flatmates went back home to self-isolate so it was just me in the flat and at times it did get lonely. My advice is to take opportunities to participate in social events online. Of course, we’d rather be attending events on campus but for now, interacting with friends and classmates on an online communication platform, such as Zoom, is a good alternative and enables you to stay involved with university life.
Just because you are studying online, it doesn’t mean that there will not be the same level of support available. Your personal tutor, lecturers and pastoral staff members can all be contacted by email. When I was revising for my online exams last semester, I found my lecturers to be really responsive when I emailed them with questions about some of the course content I didn’t fully understand.
Regarding the library, there are so many e-books and e-journals available that it was never a problem not being able to take out hard copies.
