Back on Campus: Something to Celebrate or Something to Be Concerned About?

By Chelsey Jaipersaud | Published by October 13, 2021

No more waking up five minutes before class starts to log onto our Zoom meeting from bed. No more staying in pajamas all day. No more frequent drives to Starbucks or making full meals in the middle of class. And no more staying in the comfort of our own homes. 

We’re now back to our regularly scheduled programming. Waking up early, deciding on an outfit, commuting in traffic, spending money on gas, and running late to class. Fresh sneakers, new clothes, a backpack filled with notebooks that aren’t bent at the edge, new colorful pens for note-taking, and let’s not forget the most important thing, a clean mask.

Kean students are back on campus and pressing play on what has been paused since the start of the pandemic. As students refocus and get back “on the grind” after an eventful year and a half there are many mixed feelings stirring.

“There was definitely some anxiety and I did have some readjustment issues going back and living on campus,” Kean student Tanvi Tandan said.

According to EmblemHealth’s official website under health and wellness, a lack of in person communication became the norm and with the increased technology use and strict safety guidelines, this isolation became the breeding ground for social anxiety.

For many students, the most communication they encountered was at work or during remote sessions.

Those who already struggle with anxiety and social exposure are now taking steps backwards rather than forwards. The pandemic left a door open for students to go back to their comfort zones and avoid socialization as a whole.

“I think a lot of the anxiety came from people not wanting to leave their comfort zone,” Psychology professor Charles Brown said.

Brown further explained that because people got so comfortable with their lives during the pandemic, they almost don’t want to leave behind that lifestyle and the comfort that comes from it.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, loneliness was associated with higher rates of anxiety. For some students, their anxiety and stress levels being back on campus have heightened.

School environments typically provide a multitude of opportunities for social exposure, especially for those who struggle with making friends or interacting with people. Due to the pandemic, students were forced into a box with limited interaction with close friends and loved ones.

The CDC tracked the number of covid cases from 2020 and into 2021. Just this past week there were 106,794 new cases. During the time where most students were remote, there were nearly 300,000 cases, meaning the risk of contracting covid was greater, almost everything was shut down, and they had no choice but to stay home.

“Socialization is a big part of our lives because of the society we live in, we live in a society where we do a lot of things together,” Brown said.

On a more positive note, some students such as Biology major Rashaad Couloote are just happy to be back and have a smooth transition back to in-person classes.

“It is nice to see a lot of people in person. I’ve adjusted back into the swing of things almost immediately so the change from remote to in person wasn’t rough for me,” Couloote said.

Being back at school may actually be helping the mental health of some students and keeping them motivated for what is to come. In person classes are allowing students to get back on track and find ways to rebuild their social skills.

“Sure there is the stress of commuting and parking, but I feel as if I’m able to use class as an escape, and being involved with different clubs and organizations allows me to be with different people and simply have fun with life,” said Supply Chain major, Michael Rado.

Being face to face with people has a bigger impact than seeing someone through a screen. Going back to in person classes may be an opportunity for students to get more involved. Students have been at home for nearly 18 months and because of that, they now might take advantage of campus clubs and activities. 

“I think that it’s a big plus getting back onto campus, getting us all back to a place where we can communicate face to face,” Brown said.

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