History and Media student tells us how she's found starting university during the Covid-19 pandemic

I am currently studying the BA (Hons) History and Media course online at Leeds Beckett University whilst living at home with my partner and my child. I was anxious about starting university during the Covid-19 pandemic as times are so uncertain. I’d seen reports in the media about high Coronavirus figures amongst the student population across the UK which made me nervous. I felt apprehensive about what the learning would be like and whether we would get the same support as face-to-face learning. I hadn’t done any learning prior to Coronavirus, as I was working full time and then went on maternity leave, so studying from home worried me and made me think I would be alone. 

However, this hasn’t been the case, I have been fully supported studying from home, and it is great to see how the course has been adapted to learning online. I believe the university are putting the safety of staff and students first, when I visited the Leeds Beckett campus, I saw that there were a lot of safety measures in place, and it made me feel reassured. 

My lectures so far have been mainly virtual, but my lecturers have broken down the module content into easily manageable segments which keep us students engaged. The reading lists which have accompanied these modules have all been easily accessed online. My lecturers are encouraging us to embrace virtual learning and establish a sense of school community online.

I really feel that Leeds Beckett University has done everything they could to make learning as safe and easy as possible. It is a challenging time; however, I feel lucky I am able to continue my studies and it’s good to have something to work towards and occupy my mind in this difficult time. One tip I would give to others for studying remotely is to try and be organised, set goals for each day and don’t be too hard on yourself. And for those wondering if studying during a global pandemic is still worth it, I would say, definitely as it pleasantly surprised me and I am very glad I still went a head with my course.