“I felt like I had to relearn how to have a conversation with a stranger again.”

Alyssa Fehrman, 21, started her academic career at UWM in 2019. She has since endured the highs and lows of transitioning from in-person classes to online and back again. She is studying abroad at John Cabott University in Rome to complete her degree requirements for a double major in Global Management and Italian.

Q: What was your experience like during your first year at UWM?

A: School was very interactive, I would say. You would talk to lots of people in classes. I was part of an organization called AISIC which isn’t a thing at UWM anymore since the coronavirus started. It was an organization that would help send people abroad to give them international experiences. I also went to a lot of different career fairs. There were always people tabling in the Union and that is how I found out about it.

Q: Could you describe the social atmosphere before the pandemic?

A: It was easier to talk to people mostly because when you’re a freshman everyone is in the same boat as you. You are all looking for new people to meet. I met new people in classes to talk to just in case I was confused about something. This past year I did not have a ton of in-person classes but the classes that I did have had generally the same people because we have certain classes to achieve our major. The people that I did talk to were people I had already known, not necessarily anyone new.

Q: How was living in the dorms?

A: Dorm life is as fun as living in the size of an office cubical can be but I liked the dorms. Obviously, you get to meet a whole bunch of people. I was not one of those people who went to floor activities like pizza night or meetings. I met a lot of people through the dorms. Even in the awkward exchanges in the elevators. Or people you meet in class that you run into again or see at the dining hall and end up getting food with them. I honestly was really good friends with people who did not live in the same dorm as me. It was fun to go and experience different parts of Milwaukee because we would go and do things in other places.

Q: How was the transition to online school?

A: I way overworked myself the second semester. I took too many classes than I probably should have. Going online helped me so much. I remember I would get up to have class at 9 a.m.and not get back to my dorm until 7 p.m. They were long days. I only had days like that on Monday and Wednesday but I remember that I was so physically exhausted. I was so excited for spring break to have a break from it all. Online school just started as a two-week spring break and I was so excited to have one less week of school and one more week of rest. Going online for me ended up being a good thing because I was able to have more time to do my classwork. On top of that, teachers were way more understanding because the pandemic was happening. It just worked out for me but it was socially exhausting to not be in the same environment with people. It was almost like a vacation at first until the second semester when we went back online. We were promised we would go back in person, but it was all online. It was just hard, so hard.

Q: What are your thoughts about online school?

A: I liked that you could have your own schedule. Since then I do not think I could ever go back to full in-person school. It is so hard to have a set time that you have to physically be in the classroom at the same time as everyone else. When you get to have some classes in person and others online it makes school feel like less of a burden and easier to get school work done. But the one thing I would say that hurt me was being a language major. Not being able to go in person put me behind where I wanted to be. Going online is not even close to the same as going in person. You are not forced to learn all of the material by memory. You have the safety of your notes in front of you. In that way, it harmed my education more. For instance, I did not have to think on my toes as much. That is a huge part of language acquisition.

Q: When did you have your first in-person class again?

A: My first in-person class back was in the fall of 2021.

Q: How was your experience adjusting back to in-person classes?

A: It was weird at first. Of course, the first day is syllabus day but syllabus day is always stressful for me. I feel overwhelmed. It is so much at once and every class is saying how their class is not easy and naming all of the things you have to do during the semester. But in the classes I did have in-person I feel like everyone was excited to go back in person. I heard people say they will not miss a single class last semester. They said they are so grateful to be in person but then halfway through the semester they are not showing up. For my Italian class I feel like I learned more. I was more dedicated to the class when I went in person. I know I had resources for help online but being able to go to in person discussions and ask questions that I did not understand was more helpful than asking them online. Like when I need to be shown something on my calculator it is easier in person than over a computer screen.

Q: How were things socially for you last semester with the extra COVID-19 precautions?

A: I felt safe with everything. I was never in a situation that I felt crowded around people where I felt like I was going to get COVID-19. On the other hand, in my daily life I was around so many other peoplel because I had a job. I had no control over what other people were doing. I am vaccinated so I was not concerned about getting something. Everyone that I care about is vaccinated as well so I was not apprehensive coming back to school. I definitely felt less motivated to be part of clubs and organizations. I do not know if it is because I live off campus now. The amount of people that are standing around campus and handing out things to do is not the same at all. I remember freshman year walking around and the entire sidewalk in front of the Union and library used to be lined with tables. They were handing out pamphlets and insomnia cookies and things to do. Versus this year where there was the singular tent of information on the first day of school. Without those tables, I do not even know how to go and find these people to contact to join their club. I know UWM hosts the organization fair but I am almost positive it was online. Going to something like that online is uncomfortable because you are putting yourself in a vulnerable position because you enter a chat room with so many other people.

Q: What are you up to this semester?

A: I am currently in Italy studying abroad. It has been a long time coming. I was supposed to do it my sophomore year. I got here eventually. All of my classes are in person. It is kind of crazy. Especially because this small of a school dealt with COVID-19 differently than UWM. People study here from all over the world so they had to deal with the coronavirus differently because one set zoom time would not work. There are people from Africa, Asia, different countries in Europe, and America. Scheduling classes was very hard for them. They did zoom for the spring semester of 2020, but after that they went in person but had a strict lockdown. It is too hard to do their school online because of the logistics. They have been in person for so long but I have not been in this type of social environment since 2020, but they have never left it. You can feel it. There are people at tables outside handing things out to you. I get so many emails about social events happening. It feels like I am stepping back into how school was before. It is a small school so I run into people I know everyday by accident.

Q: Did you have an issues going back to in-person school?

A: I was very excited and nervous to go back to school in person. I used to be in entry level courses when I started and now I am in upper level classes. I had never experienced higher level classes in person and did not know what would be expected of me. I was more nervous to figure that out on top of the social aspects of going back to school. I know from being in lock down and only talking to people that I was really close to, my social skills had declined. I remember feeling how bad I was at interactions with other people and how much isolation had affected me. I felt like I had to relearn how to have a conversation with a stranger again. But as it went on I realized how much I appreciated online school mostly for the convenience aspect of it. I like how there are options to take a course online or in person.