Moving away to university is a pivotal, life-changing event. For many young people, it is the first time they move out of their family home. The whole thing is exciting, to be completely self-reliant and freely form new friendships which often last a lifetime. Yet, many freshers of 2020 have seen their university expectations dashed as they find themselves locked down in their new living quarters.
September 2020 saw coronavirus cases in many areas of the UK rise rapidly, causing multiple local lockdowns. These students are locked in with fellow students who they have only just met and are unable to socialise in-person with anyone outside of this bubble.
“Thousands of students like Katie have arrived at university only to find that “Freshers doesn’t exist”.”
Universities in the North West of England have been forced into lockdown, including the University of Newcastle. I spoke to Katie, 18, a student at the University. Katie moved over 120 miles from her family home to her new accommodation, and has found herself living in a local lockdown.
Thousands of students like Katie have arrived at university only to find that “Freshers doesn’t exist”. Katie spoke of how isolating the whole experience is, and how different it is to how she had perceived a typical Fresher’s. Katie said, “I only know four other people in this entire city and they are who I live with”.
“This is a once in a lifetime experience and students have had no choice but to adapt to these new measures”
It is hard to imagine what these students are going through. This is an unprecedented situation, much like the majority of 2020, and is likely to be impacting students’ mental health. These students are faced with the loneliness and isolation of local lockdowns, as well as the usual pressures and anxieties of moving to university.
This is a once in a lifetime experience and students have had no choice but to adapt to these new measures. Katie explained that she felt like she had “missed out on the typical university experience of meeting new people”. She said they have managed to stay stocked up on student essentials, though, so luckily freshers’ much loved boozy nights haven’t been completely ruined.
Let’s hope that students in these areas are allowed a bit of (safe) freedom soon, to enjoy the university experience that they have long anticipated.
Jessica Morris
Feature image courtesy of Sincerely Media via Unsplash. Image license found here. No changes were made to this image.
