How to Effectively Transition Back to In-Person Schooling
Photo by javier trueba on Unsplash
While most, if not all students are transitioning back to in-person schooling, some can find it increasingly challenging to get back to the same routine, socially and academically.
After 2 years of virtual classes, working from home in a different time zone, and only interacting with your peers via social media or course forums, it’s time to take a look at how you can get back to the norm.
For students whose first and second year of college or university was entirely held online, this transition may be even more challenging, since this is your first real “college experience”.
Getting Back to the Norm
To ease this transition, here are a few pieces of advice I’d like to share with you related to building healthy habits, recharging your social battery and fitting in as an international student on a US campus.
Building Healthy and Effective Habits
While working or studying from home, I’m sure every single one of us can say we’ve picked up habits we really wish we hadn’t. Whether that’s sleeping in later than we normally would, procrastinating for longer periods of time, or moving away from some of the healthy hobbies we engaged in in the past, managing your schooling from home has definitely changed the way we perceive ourselves and even our education.
So how do we get back to the positive habits we had in place before the world shifted?
Well, here are a few tips to do just that:
Set a specific goal
Create “triggers”
Engage with other individuals creating the same habits
Make it enjoyable
Understand that you’ll need to remain flexible
Scientific research shows us that habits can take roughly 30 days to create and merge into our routine.
Over these 30 days, it will be challenging to stay on course, which is why the tips outlined above come in handy. By making your habits or goals as specific as possible, we can hone in on what’s important and keep that at the center of our attention.
Triggers will also help to remind us when we’re straying from the course. An example of one could be an alarm that goes off everyday at 7:30pm that reminds you to study your course notes for an hour, but you can use anything that reminds you of your goal and gains your attention.
I would also recommend that you reach out to other students or close friends that are exhibiting or trying to create the same habits, as it will make it easier to build these rituals if you have social support. You can always form a study group or join school clubs, and having other people in your circle that will keep you accountable can be largely beneficial.
Lastly, habits should be enjoyable. If you can’t see the reason behind the habit you’re trying to create, or the process of achieving it isn’t at least slightly interesting, it will be much more challenging to create them. Also, understand that there will be days, especially in the first month, where you may fall short or miss your “trigger”. This is normal and it’s all a part of the process. Understand why it happened and focus on not allowing it to happen again.
Recharging Your Social Battery
When was the last time you interacted with your classmates or friends from school in-person?
For some of you the answer to this might be 2 whole years.
One big challenge that you’ll face when you return to campus is getting used to the amount of socializing you’ll need to do and the toll that will have on your body.
Not only that, but your social skills may be slightly rusty. If you feel like this is you, here are a few pieces of advice.
First, understand that it’s normal for you to potentially feel anxious returning to in-person classes and being required to interact with your classmates. Chances are, a large portion of your classmates feel the same way. If it helps you to talk about with your peers, I’d recommend doing just that. It can help ease our worries when we realize other people feel the same and it’s not just in your head.
Next, realize that your social skills will improve over time. It may take a few weeks of small-talk to become comfortable interacting with your peers and that’s perfectly fine.
Lastly, be aware of when you need a break. Even the smallest bit of socializing can exhaust your body and mind when you haven’t been doing so for a while. Take the necessary time to recharge when you need it and give yourself credit for putting in the effort.
You’re no longer as isolated as you were when you were taking online courses, so if you have a couple close friends you can talk to about these feelings, actively reach out in-person to have those discussions.
Fitting in on Campus as an International Student
One of the biggest challenges I see, specifically for international students on college campuses, is how they interact with their American peers.
For some, who are extremely extroverted, this transition can be significantly easier.
For others, this can be seen as an extremely daunting task and one you try to avoid throughout your entire college or university experience.
So let’s take a quick look at how we can break this cycle and engage with our American peers in a way that doesn’t feel awkward, but instead feels comfortable and builds off of the interests you have.
I’m sure you’ve noticed by now that small social circles have begun to form in your classes. It’s common for this to happen and it’s likely that your American peers have their own circle of friends that they knew from high school/back home.
It’s extremely common for you to feel anxious when trying to start up conversations with these groups, especially when they’re altogether. However, you can still look for opportunities to do so.
During class for example, you may be split up into small groups outside of your normal social circle for course discussions or even class projects. These are essentially the “ice-breaker” you need to interact with individuals outside of your usual friend group.
I’d recommend starting the conversation by focusing on class work or project-related topics while trying to identify interests you share with the other students in your group. Once you hit the right topic, continue to build off of it.
Before you know it, you may find someone in your class that shares a number of the same interests as you and in the world of tech, it’s easy to reach out to them via social media and start a relationship once that initial ice-breaker has taken place.
Get Comfortable with the Uncomfortable
This transition back to in-person class will take some time to get used to and so it’s extremely important you understand that all of the awkward conversations, the broken habits and the exhaustion is expected and part of the process.
Don’t beat yourself up about the negatives, focus on the positives. Or as I like to say, get comfortable with the uncomfortable.
Being uncomfortable often means we’re facing our fears and challenging ourselves and so I challenge you, when you begin feeling uncomfortable in a situation, walk towards it instead of away from it.
See what happens as a result, and how you can use it moving forward for your own growth.
About The Author
Many years ago I came to the U.S. from Taiwan and studied in a field that rarely accepted “fresh off the boat” international students from non-English speaking countries. I’m Dr. Vivi Hua, Psy.D. and I help international students navigate the cross-cultural aspects of their experience in the U.S., so they can succeed academically and socially and build a life and career that they desire!