For the TU/e students, it’s only once a week class in campus. Most students at Eindhoven University of Technology hate the less ‘real’ contact they’ll have with the university next year.
Two student friends, one from Turkey and one from Bulgaria, walk over the abandoned TU campus on Monday. This morning the academic year opened online. Normally, it would be quite busy for the first week on the square near the main building. But now it is empty and quiet. The boys have just heard that they only need to be present on campus one day a week. The rest is going to be done online, without physical contact.
“And a day is not much”
“It’s sad” the Bulgarian sighs. “You start a study and then you expect to get to know a lot of new people. But this way, it doesn’t happen so fast. Of course, I understand that the measures are necessary to prevent the spread of the virus. But a day a week on campus is not much.” His Turkish friend joins in. “It’s going to be a tough year. I don’t know yet what I’m going to do with time, whether I’m going to find something else to compensate for the lack of social contact. I don’t really know what to do… I just think I will study very hard.”
Everyone will have to get used to the empty, silent academic year. Even that big fish in the TU pond. The one who usually jumped at people, swimming towards them, when it saw them.
Source: www.studio040.nl
Translation: Chaitali Sengupta, who gives ONLINE Inburgering classes.
