I’ll start off by saying that I never anticipated for the last semester of my undergrad career to be quite the way it ended up being. I don’t think anyone in my position could have possibly been able to predict it, though. How could we, after all? It’s difficult to just imagine the world shutting down, let alone having it actually happen. I digress, though. I’d like to take a moment to discuss my thoughts on how I feel my last semester at VWU went.
First off, I think it’s important to mention that I majored in Chemistry. Being a science major, I think it’s fair to say that we were especially hit hard when the campus had to go entirely online. Many of the later classes for the Chemistry degree have lab sections, and you really just can’t simulate them using an online format. Instrumental Methods of Analysis is probably the most ironic example, though – most of the course after Spring Break was dedicated to completing independent research projects, all of which ultimately could not be done since we weren’t allowed to come to campus
Having said that, I still think VWU – and especially the professors – did the best they could with regards to keeping us safe while still making sure we could get our classes done. Like I said, I can’t imagine most people in our positions could have predicted the world to shut down like it did, and no matter what happened, everyone was going to have their education affected. I still feel like I got a lot out of my classes in the end.
Plus, if I’m being honest, there’s actually sort of a silver lining to it all for me. Since I didn’t walk in May, I’ll be walking in December – with all of the friends that took Instrumental with me this past Spring semester. Had COVID not happened, I think I’d have been the only one graduating in May. I can’t remember the specifics about if that’s true or not, but the fact that I don’t have to worry about it now is nice.
At the end of it all, it’s definitely been a really interesting journey. With my next career goal being to become a PA, I can say that COVID has definitely solidified my choice of career. I’m excited for December 6th to roll around where we’ll actually be able to do that. It can’t come fast enough.
By Chris Fegan
cfegan@vwu.edu
