College & COVID-19: A Day In The (Quarantine) Life

College life during this quarantine has been interesting, to say the least.

Moving to Zoom calls for presentations; seeing the creative array of pictures chosen for Zoom backgrounds in class meetings to cover the clothes on the bed in your room has been a bit of a transition.

However, with the motivational emails from teacher and updates with deadlines, I have been able to keep up with my studies and complete them successfully. Spreading out the workload to keep myself accountable each day has allowed me to keep up with discipline and make sure my mind doesn’t go to mush.

My friends and I have employed the use of Zoom and group FaceTime to keep each other accountable, as well and update each other on our quarantine endeavors.

The biggest challenge for me has been allowing myself to relax.

Being involved on campus and going to college almost ten hours away from home, I was constantly keeping myself busy with academics and extracurriculars with little time dedicated to just… chill. Being so used to the productivity and now having an opportunity to watch a movie with my family three nights in a row, I have to tell myself that it is okay to take advantage of the time to give myself a break. Do I nap? Or do I prepare for internship interviews? There’s going to be a time when I won’t have the opportunity to slow down. Nap it is.

Movement has also been a challenge for me. Now that I have the opportunity to accidentally read a book for four hours straight instead of walking from class to class, I have to budget time in my day to go for a walk with my dog (who looks like a puppy still) and run outside. Doing HIIT workouts with my younger sister and laughing about how funny we look and how out of shape we are has become one of my favorite past times.

I am currently recruiting for an investment banking internship next summer in New York and had plans to visit the city to meet with recruiters at conferences and coffee chats. Due to the circumstances, I have been dedicating more time to connecting with these individuals over the phone and video calls.

Preparing for the process with mock interviews over Zoom has become a new reality, and one that many have most likely had to adapt to. Keeping up with the preparation and communicating with individuals has been extremely helpful in staying up to date on information and updates.

I am a sophomore at The University of Alabama majoring in Finance and Economics with a minor in International Studies. I am currently writing from my home in Houston, Texas with my dog and cat (and two fish) along with my family.