Anyone concerned about what college in the Fall will be like (COVID)?

[Anonymous]

It will be interesting to see if those schools that spent all of this past school year online see a decline in acceptances for the fall. I know most of these kids are very tired of distance learning, and I wonder if that will affect numbers at some of the schools who continue to choose all remote.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Didn't think we'd survive DS applying to schools, that was a tough one with him and his extreme procrastination. But now with decisions coming in, and just chatting with him about which school he can see himself going to, he has so little enthusiasm. When I talk to him about it, he's very down about the possibility of COVID-related distance learning continuing in colleges. He's talked with friends who are college freshmen this year who have told him how boring it's been. Either stuck in dorm rooms taking classes virtually, or back with Mom and Dad taking classes virtually. Few sports, no parties, no fun.

I've tried to encourage him by saying we'll know a lot more about the direction everything's going by the May 1 deadline, but I find as the calendar goes by quickly, I'm not sure if even I'm believing that. And he'll say why pay all of that money for a year of virtual classes, maybe he should just do community college. Or choose the lowest cost college he's been accepted to, even though he isn't very excited about it, and they've dropped a possible major he's interested in.

I was curious what others are thinking about the Fall 2021 year of college?

He should be applying to schools that held classes in-person until some time in November, and had great activities for the students.
This means NO state schools except Purdue, I think.

Here are some colleges and universities who did a great job in the fall:
- Purdue
- Bucknell
- St. Joseph’s University

I’ll add others as I remember.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DS chose a school that he’s loved for years. His choice was buoyed by the fact they were in class all throughout the fall semester. That said, they are struggling this semester with state guidelines and increasing county numbers. He’s worried but his merit scholarship won’t last a gap year. He’s prepared to intrepidly move forward in the fall but we are all still worried. Just hoping that increased vaccinations make the difference.

Can you name the school? It is helpful to know which schools did a good job.

[Anonymous]

There is a NYT feature that lists how schools did with containing Covid.

[Anonymous]

"Good job" is in the eye of the beholder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Good job" is in the eye of the beholder.

very true... Purdue is listed above and I know one freshman who was so miserable there she came home over Thanksgiving break and is not going back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Good job" is in the eye of the beholder.

[Anonymous]

Colleges have worked much harder than the public schools to at least have some in person learning and moving into dorms - they need the $.

Also, testing was the issue for colleges - not vaccines - and testing has improved greatly.

I will note that my DS is a senior at William & Mary and reports that the freshman have actually had a terrific year in part because of the restrictions - they have really bonded in their freshman dorms, which serve as a sort of pod.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I need to have college in person because I need my HS senior out of my house.

I recall from previous years, looking at this board, references to "soiling the nest"--so I imagine if one has a DC with that sort of bent, it's only going to get worse until school starts.

Yes! This! I didn't know there was a term for it, but after googling it, my HS senior DS is definitely soiling the nest.

And I'm so ready to push him out of it.

[Anonymous]

Nope. My kids SLAC has managed COVID very well: dedensification, strict mitigation, the community behaving in a way that recognizes their choices affect others, single rooms, in person learning. Lots of creative us of space for things like music and classes. Lots of fall outside socializing. 2 in person semesters for every kid that wanted them.

It may still be masks and the three semester system they are using to dedensify and get all kids singles. It may never be like it was pre-COVID. But, he had a great fall. He was so excited to go back yesterday.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a college freshman on campus right now. Agree that it isn't ideal, no parties and many classes are on line.

But he is very happy he went, is having a college experience and not living at home. He has new friends and likes college. It's not the same, but this is his time.

He is glad he didn't defer and prefers this on line high school last spring.

+1...our freshman's classmates who deferred are bored out of their minds.

I will also add that given the status of more vaccines, particularly the JNJ and Oxford, that there should be enough by late spring/early summer to ensure something closer to a normal fall will be in store.

[Anonymous]

Zoom parties and masked, socially distanced outdoor gatherings just aren't college. Check out the footage from Tuscaloosa after the national championship. game. That's what a college experience should look like. Roll Tide!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Zoom parties and masked, socially distanced outdoor gatherings just aren't college. Check out the footage from Tuscaloosa after the national championship. game. That's what a college experience should look like. Roll Tide!

You don’t get to decide what college “should” look like. It depends on your kid’s personality and that they want out of college. Small in person classes, picnic dinners with friends, hiking and kayaking with friends worked very well for my kid. He had a great fall as a freshman, despite masks and social distance. He did not want frats and big time sports and huge classes. Introverts are dealing well with COViD restricts because they don’t want to be in crowds amd constantly socializing. Hanging out with a couple of friends is more their speed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My freshman is greatly enjoying his first year of college. No, it isn't a ton of fun, but he is meeting other students and has leaned in hard to his studies.

I'm trying not to be preachy, but I think it is important to remember that having the opportunity for a college education is an incredible privilege. This past year has really sharpened and clarified for my kid that the purpose of college is to prepare to be a contributing member of society. This is a generation of kids who are confronting a pandemic, racial injustice, climate change, an go out into the world and do things to effect change. My son's maturity level in the past year has been incredible; I see a real seriousness of purpose and a lack of self pity that is really amazing.

The way I look at it, this generation is being forced to put childish things aside earlier than planned, and is not being afforded the luxury of four years of partying. Yes it sucks, but grow up, get your priorities straight, and if you don't want to go to college because it isn't big fun then feel free to consider the alternatives. I'm sure they are probably hiring at your nearest JBS meat packing plant, the Marines could always use a few good men, and scraping out a minimum wage existence delivering InstaCart is probably a heck of a lot more fun than studying.

New poster. Parent of a college sophomore. This post above is right on. Maybe it's because DC is a sophomore rather than a freshman, but there is a lot of maturity (and yes, some mere resignation) about the idea of "We can't predict everything, so we will do what we must to keep 'going' to college through this."

To OP: Is your son considering a mix of large and small schools? Has he sat down and researched, online, how the colleges he's considering handled the fall semester? He can look for articles as well as the colleges' own materials (which will tend to paint a rosier picture than, say, local news items, or posts on parent/student forums for the colleges). A college that was horrible at containing the virus, did little to no testing, and ended up sending kids home etc. -- I'm looking at YOU, James Madison University -- is one he should reconsider. I would not assume that such colleges are necessarily going to "learn their lesson" and be able to do much better in fall of 2021. If a college on his list had a cohesive, successful plan in place and kept students on campus and/or made distance learning more palatable--that is a school maybe worth moving to the top of his list.

Just FYI, OP: Our DC's small(ish) LAC, with about 2,600 students, of whom 99 percent live on campus, had a full fall semester in person, on campus. DC had about half of classes in person and the rest virtually. DC is about to head back there for spring semester. There was very, very strict masking and distancing, classes held outdoors as long as possible into the fall/winter, testing, DC never once ate a meal inside the food halls (all food was grab-and-go), immediate isolation of anyone with positive tests, etc.

Smaller schools with almost everyone ON campus can do far better at controlling the spread of the virus than large schools/schools with many off-campus-dwellers can do. It's just a matter of being quite literally able to contain the students and contain the virus. I know one large school did OK because it only brought back freshmen and I think juniors for the fall semester, then has sophomores and seniors on campus for spring semester. So look for colleges that are small or that are thinking outside the box like that. Are any of his schools in those categories?

While things may be much better by this fall, I think that how colleges handled the fall 2020 semester and how they handle this spring semester will be a good indicator of whehter they'll be ready for any resurgence of the virus this fall, or whether they'll blithely assume "the vaccine will make everything fine by then!" and they blow it again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My freshman is greatly enjoying his first year of college. No, it isn't a ton of fun, but he is meeting other students and has leaned in hard to his studies.

I'm trying not to be preachy, but I think it is important to remember that having the opportunity for a college education is an incredible privilege. This past year has really sharpened and clarified for my kid that the purpose of college is to prepare to be a contributing member of society. This is a generation of kids who are confronting a pandemic, racial injustice, climate change, an go out into the world and do things to effect change. My son's maturity level in the past year has been incredible; I see a real seriousness of purpose and a lack of self pity that is really amazing.

The way I look at it, this generation is being forced to put childish things aside earlier than planned, and is not being afforded the luxury of four years of partying. Yes it sucks, but grow up, get your priorities straight, and if you don't want to go to college because it isn't big fun then feel free to consider the alternatives. I'm sure they are probably hiring at your nearest JBS meat packing plant, the Marines could always use a few good men, and scraping out a minimum wage existence delivering InstaCart is probably a heck of a lot more fun than studying.

New poster. Parent of a college sophomore. This post above is right on. Maybe it's because DC is a sophomore rather than a freshman, but there is a lot of maturity (and yes, some mere resignation) about the idea of "We can't predict everything, so we will do what we must to keep 'going' to college through this."

To OP: Is your son considering a mix of large and small schools? Has he sat down and researched, online, how the colleges he's considering handled the fall semester? He can look for articles as well as the colleges' own materials (which will tend to paint a rosier picture than, say, local news items, or posts on parent/student forums for the colleges). A college that was horrible at containing the virus, did little to no testing, and ended up sending kids home etc. -- I'm looking at YOU, James Madison University -- is one he should reconsider. I would not assume that such colleges are necessarily going to "learn their lesson" and be able to do much better in fall of 2021. If a college on his list had a cohesive, successful plan in place and kept students on campus and/or made distance learning more palatable--that is a school maybe worth moving to the top of his list.

Just FYI, OP: Our DC's small(ish) LAC, with about 2,600 students, of whom 99 percent live on campus, had a full fall semester in person, on campus. DC had about half of classes in person and the rest virtually. DC is about to head back there for spring semester. There was very, very strict masking and distancing, classes held outdoors as long as possible into the fall/winter, testing, DC never once ate a meal inside the food halls (all food was grab-and-go), immediate isolation of anyone with positive tests, etc.

Smaller schools with almost everyone ON campus can do far better at controlling the spread of the virus than large schools/schools with many off-campus-dwellers can do. It's just a matter of being quite literally able to contain the students and contain the virus. I know one large school did OK because it only brought back freshmen and I think juniors for the fall semester, then has sophomores and seniors on campus for spring semester. So look for colleges that are small or that are thinking outside the box like that. Are any of his schools in those categories?

While things may be much better by this fall, I think that how colleges handled the fall 2020 semester and how they handle this spring semester will be a good indicator of whehter they'll be ready for any resurgence of the virus this fall, or whether they'll blithely assume "the vaccine will make everything fine by then!" and they blow it again.

Small schools may on average be able "do better" than large schools however, some large schools -- like Cornell which had all 14,000 undergrads back, in-person classes, and most kids living off campus -- did better in the fall than most small schools. So ruling out larger schools as a whole makes no sense.