How to Survive Virtual Classes 101: A Reflection by a Northeastern University “Study-Abroad” Student
Sharing 5 lessons I learned (the hard way) being a virtual student in this new world, so you don’t have to.
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Has it already been 3 months???
Wow. This semester has flown by. And I wouldn’t have thought it would…
Hello, I’m Hanna.
For a bit of background, I’m Hanna Elzaridi, a sophomore at Northeastern University who’s a part of the Global Engagement Program; a four-year study abroad experience. Now before the pandemic, this was meant to be an exclusive program where 14 students get to attend classes at various Northeastern University satellite campuses and partner universities around the world. The plan was as follows: We started studies at the New College of the Humanities in London in our first year, we would travel to the Northeastern satellite campus in San Francisco the following year, travel to a global location of choice for our third year, and finally, spend our senior year in the main Boston campus.
Oh the ambitions of my pre-pandemic self…
(You can read more about this amazing experience here: https://www.northeastern.edu/geo/global-engagement-program/ )
The Final Call: To Go or Not to Go?
Now to July of this year, where I was pretty much given an ultimatum: either go attend my promised San Francisco semester and risk being sent back home in a few days (please keep in mind my home is an 18-hour flight away) or stay home in Kuwait and attend my long-awaited study abroad semester… virtually.
After days and days of contemplating and thinking, it was simply a calculation of pros and cons:
I could take the overpriced 18-hour flight to a ‘locked-down’ California, not experiencing it the way I should, and have my return home a constant possibility in the back of my mind. Or otherwise, I can stay in Kuwait, experience one more semester of having my family and high school friends around, and travel the following semester to a better and more stable California (or so I thought).
Now despite my usual risk-taking thrill-loving self, the latter just seemed like the reasonable option, -especially with the overwhelming “yes Hanna, you’re better off with us during this crazy year” responses I kept hearing from family and friends.
I Guess Not To Go…
It was only after sending the final email about my plans to stay home to my advisor, that it suddenly hit me: I just signed up for my Boston-based Northeastern University’s study-abroad program in San Francisco. Oh and I will be attending it virtually from Kuwait. One. Ginormous. Paradox.
I had so many questions: “Am I actually going to learn anything this semester?” “How will I communicate with my classmates (who are all together in SF)”? “Will my professors be understanding of the time difference?” “Will it even feel like a university-experience?”
Well, let me tell you that saying this virtual ‘semester in San Francisco’ program was educational would be an understatement. Yes, it’s not your typical university experience (as expected), but definitely a worthwhile one nonetheless.
By taking classes in Marketing (4983), Innovation (2301), Entrepreneurial Startups (4501), and Lean Design (3330), I have learned so much more than just how SEO works or what the SCRUM framework is; the past 3 months have been an educational experience of communication skills, time management, leadership, hard work, effort, and then the curriculum itself to top it all off.
So here I am, writing this blog for all of you out there who might be considering joining a virtual program in the coming semester (study abroad or not), telling you all I’ve learned, and what you should do differently.
1. Time-difference sucks but it’s manageable.
If anyone were to tell you about the horrors of time-difference, it would be me. With continuous Wednesday classes from 8 pm to 4 am, I’ve experienced my fair share of late nights and early mornings due to the clock in Kuwait being 12 hours ahead of SF.
Yes, it was definitely challenging to present with the same enthusiasm as my classmates when it was 2 am my time. Yes, there were some nights when all I wanted to do was fall asleep at 10 pm when in reality I had a 3-hour lecture ahead of me. And yes, it’s a headache in itself just keeping track of the time-difference. But… it’s doable.
With the help of my three best friends this semester: coffee, to-do lists, and alarm clocks, I was able to excel (or so I hope) in my classes. It was simply a matter of routine. This is what I did and what I recommend doing:
- Alarm goes off every morning at 7:30 am (Have your blinds open, the sun will make it easier to get up)
- Make a cup of coffee
- Usually have a meeting with my peers in SF (who were getting ready for bed at this point)
- Work in the early hours of the day
- Have some me-time and dinner from around 5 to 7 pm
- Get ready for classes starting at 8 pm
- Make my to-do list for tomorrow before bed (Highly recommended- makes you so productive in the morning!!)
- Go to bed at 11:30 pm (or later depending on my classes that day)
Although I’m sure your schedule is very different, all I’m suggesting you take away is the discipline of routine. Trust me, it’s amazing what you can accomplish when you get into a routine.
2. Online courses aren’t an ‘easy A’.
Something I heard quite often when I would complain to friends and family about the overwhelming workload as a virtual business student was some sort of dismissal with “you’re not in med school” and “online classes are easy”. Now I am in no way saying that medical school is not hard (because as the daughter of two doctors I am assured that it is), but it’s safe to say my classes were definitely not ‘easy A’s’.
I have to admit I definitely came into this semester thinking “how hard can a few online classes from thousands of miles away be?”And boy was I proven wrong.
Taking on such hands-on 3-hour courses filled with lectures, seminars, guest speakers, extensive projects, and expectations of the next Facebook-Esque university project was challenging to say the least… but rewarding nonetheless.
So this is my advice for you: don’t assume your classes will be easy just because they’re online. Professors are changing curriculums and adapting to the times, so I assure you, your classes won’t automatically be ‘easy A’s’.
A quick side note for those interested in Northeastern’s ‘Semester in San Francisco’ (SSF) program: if you want to truly experience the ins and outs, ups and downs of an entrepreneurial journey in the most intensive, challenging, thrilling, and rewarding three months, this is the program for you.
3. Network, network, network.
If I had to choose one lesson I learned over the past semester, it would be the importance of networking. Evident from my ONE connection on LinkedIn at the start of the program, I didn’t realize the power of being well-connected. ONE. CONNECTION. And it was my mom🙃!!
I honestly can’t even believe the way it took five professors and four classes about entrepreneurship to convince me to connect with the incredible people I meet in my university journey and this SSF program specifically. When I tell you the guest lectures we had were insane, I’m not kidding. From Steve Jobs’ coworkers to flying car inventors; we met them all. And that's without even considering the amazing professors themselves, all with phenomenal entrepreneurial backgrounds. Thankfully, I learned my lesson along the way, and still have these incredible people in my network all thanks to the incredible tool I once neglected by the name of LinkedIn.
My Marketing professor actually made it a goal for each one of his students to double their LinkedIn connections by the end of the semester…
Hello Professor Singh, I guess you’re shocked right now at the state of my LinkedIn back in September (I am too) but yay… I did reach the goal, didn’t I haha?
So if there’s anything I can suggest, it would be to please network!!!
These connections you make along the journey all come together at the end to create a powerful network, so please don’t let the opportunity go to waste. In Zoom times especially, you lose that human connection you would have in real life, so your journey to networking with the amazing individuals you meet is simply a ‘connect’ button away.
4. Invest in a very good desk chair.
Your back can thank me later.
5. Enjoy this time while it lasts.
I can’t believe how fast this semester has flown by and I can’t believe I’m one class away from ending it all. One minute I was creating my first-ever blog on LinkedIn, and here I am writing my last (at least for my course requirements, don’t worry you will hear more of my very wise and highly intellectual thoughts soon:)) This semester was unlike any other, in a year unlike any other… but I’m thankful for the experience. No, I wasn’t chilling by the Golden Gate bridge between classes, but I would still say it felt like I was in San Francisco in some weird way this semester. With the connections I’ve made, the new people I now call friends, and that “Semester in San Francisco” text now written on my transcript, the legendary Silicon Valley doesn’t seem so far away anymore.
Thank you for reading my last blog written for my Marketing class! If you have any questions about my experience or anything else, please feel free to reach out to me via LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/hanna-elzaridi000/)!
Talk soon,
Hanna Elzaridi :)
