Seems to me that if conditions are such that jobs/internships will be plentiful enough for all these people to productively take gap years, they will probably be conducive to in-person classes most places too.
Agree - I think as it gets closer and students are learning that they may be back on campus but still online and without campus events it isn’t what they want to invest in. There is no amount of “quality” instruction online that gets students excited about sitting in front of a screen for school.
The only thing is - I think spring semester could be worse than fall. Do people really think the entire country will be vaccinated by January? They have always said 12-18 months would be the fastest vaccine a couple possibly be here.
I’m sure there are colleges that are going to have more kids taking leaves than others. Expensive private colleges in urban areas might be places to avoid this coming year. Some colleges have already decided that certain grades won’t go to campus in the fall, opting to have fewer students per semester in campus housing. That would be a deal breaker for a lot of students who would have gone back otherwise. Seniors get to go back but sophomores do not? Look for sophs to take a leave.
I don’t think activities are “not happening”. That seems to be something that’s coming up here on CC now. I’ve seen colleges who are going to try very hard to make sure students can still gather in small groups for the club meetings etc and, as of right now, some sports are not off the table. S19’s XC coach just had a FT meeting with the team and they are full steam ahead for summer training as usual from home. He’s very optimistic.
I mentioned this on another thread but Bates decided to do the 2 classes for 7 week mini semesters schedule. One of the reasons was that, with four classes, they were going to have to spread out class times and have class 4:30-9:00pm and that’s when kids do their extracurriculars. They want that time of the day saved for that. I realize this is only a LAC option but it shows that the college is planning for kids to have as full of an experience as possible within the Covid limitations.
As for leave of absences, it seems that private schools are more likely to grant them than public schools.
From a UC student perspective: While my school (UCSB) has yet to announce their plan for the fall, a few other UCs have announced that they will be moving towards a “hybrid” model which is in fact a remote model with only a very select few actually having hybrid courses.
From my schools Reddit to conversations with friends, I am also sensing that a lot of us are considering taking the semester off. If that translates to people actually doing it, I’m not sure. The issue is that if Fall quarter is remote, why should we expect winter/spring quarter to be any different? I can only speak for myself but at that rate, we would be an entire year behind on graduation and I don’t know if I am prepared to put myself that behind.
On a side note, I think the UC system is preparing for this possibility. I got an email yesterday about cross-school enrollment for the fall which is something that I’ve never gotten before. They are making it easy to enroll in online courses between the campuses which may indicate a worry that some classes may not fill up which in turn would result in them losing tuition revenue for those courses.
I wonder if “ outdoorsy” colleges will see a higher retention rate. A person who was attracted to Dartmouth for its hiking opportunities will unlikely have that experience removed. Outdoor exercise is something that was actively encouraged, even at the height of lockdown.
My S who will be a sophomore next year will be going back if school will be in session with actual classes. If it’s going to be remote, he will stay home. We aren’t going to pay for a dorm or off campus apartment for virtual learning, when he can stay home rent free and do the classes online. He will also get a job in addition to his online classes…but we’ll see what happens
None of my friends are saying their kids will be taking leaves or otherwise walking away from the next school term. WHERE they are going to be in the fall - on campus, off campus, or home - is another story. I would guess they will be back on/near campus (UC, private local, OOS public) doing the learning however they are planning to do it at their respective schools.
I do know a gal who’s deferring her master’s a year because 1) it’s a year program, so possibly a remote experience in its entirety, and 2) she is currently working full-time in her field and CAN defer. In this case, I would have made the same decision.
The economic hit experts are predicting for college grads (putting them back 5-10 years in income, etc.) will be due in part to students pushing out graduation with leaves or deferments or simply walking away from higher education entirely. Something to think about.
Some kids I know had internships interrupted that have either started back up or will and they will go back to them and stay if school is online.
D18 is ahead of the game and can take less classes and still graduate on time. Her school is also very flexible with the amount of classes she takes. Her regular online classes are awful, she doesn’t want to pay top dollar. I do think many kids will stay home unless they already have a lease. To show up to campus without having to go to class is an expensive luxury.
Her school obviously thought this might happen as they sent out surveys asking what you would do if school went online.
D is an incoming Freshman and taking a gap year. She has many friends at Stanford, Harvard and Yale doing the same. She only had to submit a plan for her year and it was approved within 24 hours. Harvard just recently announced they would be flexible with granting leave requests, but I think they had a flexible policy anyway. D also has friends at Vanderbilt who said leave requests were granted right up until plans for Fall were announced and then since then no gap years or deferrals of matriculation have been granted. I think schools are all over the place on that. But to OP’s question–a LOT of class of 2020 grads are heading into gap years from what we see.
My D is home sick today and looks awful. That’s another weight on the scale to staying home next academic year. I get putting yourself at risk to work essential jobs or help other people. But to put yourself at risk (by living in the dorms) doesn’t make sense to me, especially if you don’t get to go to class and your sport is cancelled.
I do think the risk of kids coming from all across the country and living in dorms creates a breeding ground.
None of my D’s classmates aren’t returning, but I can see a significant issue as a Freshman for schools going remote/virtual. Orientation, sharing experiences with others, making new friends, etc., is a huge part of acclimating to college. Those kids are in a very tough position
Deleted and posted in College in The Fall thread.
@silverpurple I would definitely ask that question. Could they keep you from taking your kids home? For many, this really isn’t an option because college is so far away but that brings up other issues about not being able to get to them at all. I do worry about it a bit. I think about how we could FaceTime S19 if he got sick but, if he felt really sick, I don’t know that he’d answer his phone and we’d be so worried until we could get in touch with him. Would there be someone we could call to check on him for us? I mean the questions for all of this just seem endless.
If he got really sick, wouldnt you fly in to be with him?
@roycroftmom I’ll repost on correct thread and answer your question.