Back on Campus  [22.12.21]

Studying in the lecture hall, meeting people spontaneously, Mensa ...: Life is returning to the Hohenheim campus. For students, however, this also means: health pass, mandatory masks, advance reservation of study places, and a constant change between online and face-to-face sessions. Many would also have liked to see even more events on campus. How are Hohenheim students getting back into university life after the lockdown? The Online Courier asked around the Palace and on Instagram.

Leo Richter and Tim Lindner are in their 5th semester of the Bachelor's program in Agricultural Biology. However, they have only rarely taken a walk through the Hohenheim Gardens.

"We have an hour-long break between classes, and at the moment there aren't quite so many places to go. So we thought, let's go for a walk in the garden," said Leo.

 

New motivation

How does it feel to be back? "I finally had a reason to get up early again today!" laughed Tim. "Seriously, it feels really good to have structure again. When I was studying online, it wasn't always easy for me to get motivated. I often put off studying until the next day, and then a lot just piles up."

Fortunately, networking among fellow students didn't come to a standstill during the lockdown.

"We often met via Discord and discussed the subject matter together. But something like that can't replace real campus life. Sometimes in the last semesters you had the feeling that you were missing out on something," said Leo.

This also applied to the course material: "All the lecturers tried to make the best of the situation. But de facto there were big differences in the quality of the online courses. To some extent, this also depended on the subject matter: Practical content in particular simply cannot be transferred to digital spaces without suffering in terms of quality," said Leo.

 

It's the setting that counts

The "lecture hall feeling," the "community with other students and professors," "seeing something other than your own apartment for a change": according to a survey in the story on the Hohenheim Instagram account, quite a few other students also missed this. Just like the "salad bar" in the Mensa or "parties".

Karina Kunert also had a similar view. The student of the Master's degree program in Economics settled down on a bench in front of the Palace with a group of fellow students. "We've probably never been so excited to go to university as we are today... After all, in the last three semesters we've only seen the campus to take exams," said the Master's student.

"You can concentrate better in the lecture hall than at home," said Henric Renz. "But above all, I really missed all the other things: the Mensa, the friends... After all, studying should also be fun. That's what makes learning fun!"

 

The best of both worlds?

Emre Aydin, on the other hand, was also able to come to terms with online studies: "I have an hour's drive to Hohenheim. Today I came here especially for a 15-minute compulsory course. I don't think that's the best solution. I would find it better if the semester were completely hybrid."

Melina Psyllakis came to the university even though her events are also streamed today: "I just wanted to experience the normal everyday university life again. Nevertheless, I think it would be good if the university could take something away from the experiences of the last few semesters. After all, it would be ideal to combine the best of the digital and analog worlds."

Not everyone who wants to can be on site

For some students, however, the new semester also is also a source of frustration. They would also like to be on campus today, yet find themselves unwillingly attending Zoom events.

Due to the Corona Ordinance, seats in the lecture halls are still not allowed to be full. Since the lecture halls and seminar rooms were already at capacity even before the pandemic, some of the events now have to be held online or hybrid by necessity. Room planning is highly complex under these conditions.

"Cool, 2 hours of attendance a week, kudos to you," a student replied sarcastically to the Instagram survey, and he is not alone in his disappointment. The proportion of face-to-face events can vary greatly from student to student.

On the other hand, it is not always easy for lecturers to correctly assess demand. Although the registration for attendance dates is actually binding, there were already cases in the first days in which only 10% of the registered students appeared in the lecture hall.

In such cases, the room planning could be readjusted. It is therefore worth asking lecturers whether a particular online event can be extended to a hybrid version.

 

Covid-19 rules have caused few problems so far

And how are the students coping with the Covid-19 rules? The students in front of the Palace, at least, seemed to be able to live with them just fine.

"When I read through the email from the President, I thought to myself at first: Oh man, this is going to be complicated... But here on site, you then realize: Actually, everything is not so bad and it works really well. You get used to it quickly. I even keep forgetting that I'm wearing a mask," said Tim Lindner.

Karina Kunert also felt that the effort is manageable: "Vaccinated students only have to validate their health pass once a semester. I think that's a good solution. At most, it's stressful for those who have to be tested regularly."

At least this is now possible on campus: the Garben pharmacy has set up a new testing center in the Euroforum. Opening hours: Mon-Fri 7:30-8:15 am, 11:45 am-1:00 pm. Currently, tests are possible without an appointment. However, you can play it safe by making an appointment at: testkalender.de/teststelle-uni-hohenheim

 

New students explore the campus

Face-to-face events are particularly important for students in their first semesters. After all, they still have to find their way around in their new environment - and above all: make new contacts. To support them in this, the student representatives for the departments (Fachschaft) have been working hard over the past few days: With campus tours in small groups, speed meeting events, or barbecue evenings.

Vanessa Maucher, Alina Troscheit, and Louise Hengstberger are starting their Bachelor's degree in Food Science and Biotechnology and got to know each other during their first days on campus.

"There are some people who say, 'Oh, online teaching is much more convenient.' I see it differently and I'm really happy that we can be here," Vanessa said. "Meeting new people basically only works if you meet on site. Our faculty has already organized a pizza night, which I thought was a really great event."

 

Everyday university life still has to settle down

Sometimes, however, getting to know each other goes a little differently than planned: "We actually wanted to attend a local event, but didn't meet anyone. Apparently there was a misunderstanding or a spontaneous change of plans. Instead, we went to the Mensa together and talked," reported Alina.

All three students are eager to see how their new university routine will settle in under Covid-19 conditions: "I hope that there will be good opportunities to log on to online events from campus if they fall between two face-to-face sessions. Lecture halls have been reserved especially for us new students for this purpose. In the future, however, we will have to look for free places to study ourselves," reported Louise.

This semester, some advance planning is required: seats in the libraries and specially designated lecture halls must be reserved via ILIAS. In addition, the dining rooms of the Mensa can also be used for studying outside of meal times (Mon to Fri 8:15 - 10:50 a.m. | 2:15 - 4:40 p.m.). For this purpose, the university has signed a new usage agreement with Student Services. Reservations can be made with the helpers wearing high-visibility vests in the entrance area.

 

Text: Leonhardmair / Translation: Neudorfer