After almost two years of on and off lockdowns with ever-changing restrictions, we are hopefully reaching the light at the end of the tunnel regarding Covid-19.

This September, colleges and universities around the country saw the re-opening of their campuses as students finally transfer from Zoom to real life teaching once more. For many, coming back to campus has been a big transition – the early morning commute, remembering how to interact with others and catching up on any work that wasn’t possible last year.

Students working around a desk. Source: Unsplash — Students working around a desk. *Source: Unsplash*

A YouGov poll was completed last year that asked students how motivated they were, and how they were coping with the impact of the pandemic and learning online.

The YouGov poll found that 69 per cent of university students had their course delivered online last year, many struggled as 39 per cent found their motivation and self-discipline had been impacted ‘fairly negatively’, and 45 per cent said their mental health was affected ‘fairly negatively’.

Naomi Allan, Acacia O’Donnell and Danielle McCreadie are all students at City of Glasgow College. Last year their full course was online, so being on campus was new for them.

They were all in agreement with the fact that learning online was not ideal, Acacia O’Donnell, 18, Practical Journalism student, said: “I found it stressful and more difficult to complete the coursework.”

The in-person classes have made them more motivated to complete their work on time. Acacia said: “You’re structured in here, you’re grounded”.

While they were all relieved to be back in college, they agreed that it was overwhelming at times after a year of online learning. Acacia said she was “more motivated to get (her) work completed in college” and finds she is “getting things done a lot quicker than if (she) was at home.”

Naomi Allan, 23, studying Practical Journalism and Danielle McCreadie, 23, also studying Practical Journalism, were “in the middle” regarding being motivated this year.

Naomi said: “It’s a complete change to what it was last year, I’m trying to get used to a routine again which can be quite hard on your deadlines and motivation.”

Covid-19 restrictions also had an impact on motivation as it is another set of new rules to add to the routine. 39 per cent of university students found that the pandemic had a ‘fairly negative’ impact on their motivation and self-discipline last year, a YouGov poll found.

Being back on campus has brought motivation for students to hit their deadlines and allows them to socialize once more. 52 per cent of university students found that Covid-19 had a ‘very negative’ impact on making new friends, says a YouGov poll, with 55 per cent of those aged 18-24.

Additionally, 39 per cent of those aged 18-24 years old said they sometimes felt lonely last term. “It’s been good to be surrounded by friends.” said Acacia, regarding being back in college.

There is still a while to go before we can get back to normal (or as close to normal as possible), but the student’s increase in motivation is a good start to getting life back on track.

Back on Campus: How Motivated are Students During Covid-19?