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The COVID-19 pandemic is disrupting everyone’s lives—and students at the Â鶹ӰԺ are no exception. From moving off campus to adjusting to classes online, the lives of students have turned upside down in a relatively short period of time.

We invited students to document their experience transitioning to remote learning. Here is what one of them said:

COVID-19’s largest impact is the fact that I somehow need to learn lab skills online. Next week in my lab course, I would finally have been able to test whether a gene that I had researched for the first half of the year actually plays a significant role in autophagy, the body’s way of cleaning out damaged cells. 

Instead, I will be analyzing other people’s data from prior semesters. I will still be able to learn about data analysis, but I lost opportunities to practice specific lab techniques.

Still, the shift has been pretty smooth. A lot of resources for my courses were online before the switch, so it was just a matter of adding lecture videos. 

However, I have found it more difficult to focus when my professor is on my computer screen as opposed to listening in-person. There are a lot of resources online that help me figure out Zoom, navigate lecture captures, and stay focused while learning from home. 

I’ve found it helpful to make a new routine and stick to it. Even though I can watch a lecture capture at any time, it’s nice to have specific hours set aside for schoolwork. I also go outside at least once a day, even if it's walking the dog or getting the mail. It helps get my blood flowing and prevents me from getting too stir crazy.

I think this change will be a good way to practice self-discipline and develop good study habits. The experience helped me see how helpful CU Â鶹ӰԺ is in crises, and it reminded me that I tend to focus better on class material when it’s taught in-person.

I’m excited to come on campus and do science again!

Kylie Conway