Daria can study with her friends despite the pandemic: ‘None of us needs to struggle alone with homework’

What have you learned this autumn?

I have learned how important the routines are during the pandemic. When the situation changes so rapidly, it's nice to have something stable in my life. Like, getting up at the same time every morning, which I still struggle with... I have also learned that taking good care of myself is crucial right now. I have to sleep enough, eat healthy, and exercise to maintain my physical and mental health. I still need to practice with this, but I have gotten much better already. 

Have you learned new study methods?

I used to study alone, but right now it's impossible. There's so much new information to process. I was really happy to find some similar minded people to study together with. At first, it was a bit tricky as we had to do it completely remotely but now we are fluent with it. I think it's really nice that we are encouraged to study in a group. Personally, I learn so much more when I study together with other people. It's also cool that we are kind of mental support for each other. None of us needs to struggle alone with homework. We got each other's backs and it's really awesome. 

What kind of challenges have you faced?

The autumn was rather challenging for me. There has been a lot of social isolation and I've been really missing my friends and family. I've also been struggling with building new routines like getting up in the morning to watch lectures. I still struggle with it, though... But I've gotten a much better with it! So, now I'm just waiting for the spring. I think the situation will be much better then already. 

What is the highlight of your week?

The highlight of my week is participating in some kind of social event, like something organised by our student guild or studying together with my friends. It feels great that even though all of those events are organised virtually, I don't have to struggle all alone. We are in this together and there are other people around me. I think it's really great that student organisations come up with the new ideas of events that can be organised during the pandemic and keep everybody safe.