In March 2020, I was finishing my bachelor in Energy and Environment Engineering at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm when COVID-19 reached Sweden. Regardless of the pandemic, I wanted to continue my studies at KTH but also combine it with an additional experience abroad which is why I have selected EIT InnoEnergy Master School. The opportunity of receiving a double degree made it even more compelling.
Of course, the outbreak of the pandemic affected everyone. Some reacted with panic, harvesting toilet paper and canned food at supermarkets, while others, such as me, initially failed to grasp the severity of the new virus. When the university campus closed and countries started shutting their borders, my classmates and I were convinced that everything would be back to normal in a week, or maybe as much as a month?
Oh, how wrong we were.
One and a half year later…
As you are surely aware of, the pandemic continued to ravage, leading to ‘lockdown’ and restrictions in most countries. As a result, the first year of my Master’s in Smart Electrical Networks and Systems was rather different than expected. Nevertheless, teachers and students adapted to the situation making it possible to continue studying with reduced physical attendance and online lectures.
For the second year of the master’s, I am studying at UPC Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, in Spain. As society is starting to see the benefits of a successful vaccination campaign, restrictions are being lifted, social venues are being opened and we, students, are finally being welcomed back to campus! For my first face-to-face class in half a year, I was so excited that I decided to dress up in high heels for the occasion. The one-meter distance we kept and the face masks that hid my colleagues faces only slightly hampered my nostalgia and enthusiasm. Who could have thought that attending a class could feel like your birthday?
I am slowly getting used to being in the same room as my teacher and fellow students again, and I have gone back to wearing comfortable snickers. However, I am taking with me some key learnings from the teaching revolution that the pandemic entailed.
My takeaways of online learning
Many students experienced some of the benefits of remote lectures early on, such as waking up five minutes before class and still being on time, spending the entire week in sweatpants and having constant access to the fridge! However, there were also some pitfalls, such as forgetting to turn off the mic while gossiping with your flat-mate or accidentally turning on the camera when attending class comfortably still in bed.
Personally, I learned to appreciate the value of physical presence. I realised that the social dimension, both for well-being and for collaborating, helping, and motivating each other, is much more important for me than I could have ever imagined. Being able to meet my fellow students in class also makes it easier to network with other EIT InnoEnergy students, both from my own and other programmes. Having contacts that share a high ambition in building the future energy system is a great advantage, either when finding a team to realise an entrepreneurial idea or simply to support each other when entering the labour market.
Secondly, online learning helped me to differentiate between when I need a topic to be explained by the teacher, and when I can more efficiently look through the (online) literature and solve assignments on my own.
The best of both worlds
As students return to campus teachers are increasingly combining online tools and physical presence, as is also becoming the post-pandemic trend for more companies. This development is welcomed, creating a more diverse education offer according to individual preferences.
In addition to a more dynamic university experience, I am enjoying the general opening of society, being able to dance, attend sport’s events and travel with other EIT InnoEnergy students. As life is returning to a new post-pandemic normal, I am treasuring every aspect of it, having learned from COVID-19 to value student life as a privilege that should not be taken for granted.
By Maria Isabel Bang Jensen, EIT InnoEnergy Master School student