The situation created by Covid-19 has had a very stressful impact on students. They have been facing a very stressful period from classes moving online to semesters being postposed. As universities have gone virtual within a matter of days, how has this affected students?
Read this short interview with our Master Programme student at Intercultural Business Communication Abdelrahman Nady Shaker Muhammed from Egypt, who is currently at the IULM University in Milano, Italy conducting an Erasmus Study Exchange Semester through our Erasmus+ Higher Education Student and Staff Mobility with Programme Countries
Can you describe your experience as an Erasmus+ exchange student in Milano that faced COVID-19? How did this situation affect your Erasmus experience?
At the beginning, I was very worried because the more we went on with lockdown I started to be anxious from the number of the death toll and positive cases in Lombardy, the region of Milan. With the government procedures and instructions, I was also very afraid that the situation was going to be worse and I was also tired of all the procedures and instructions I had to follow just to go to the supermarket. With time, I got used to it and I adapted myself to the “new normal”. I also decided not to follow the news because I felt like I was not just following coronavirus news for the places that mattered to me like Italy where I currently live, and Egypt where I am from, but I was following the news of coronavirus from everywhere in the globe, and my mind was processing a lot of information and introduced too much of negative vibes every day. After all this time, I feel like I missed a lot and that is true. I spend 3 months of my stay in Milano at home and I just went to the university 2 weeks before the coronavirus outbreak. I did not manage to know much of my colleagues and travel around as I planned. I did not experience the Erasmus+ experience as needed. l wish things were different. Although I learnt a lot through the online sessions, the experience as a whole changed me a lot and made me look at things from different perspectives and point of view.
How helpful was it to you the EMUNIs blended learning experience to cope with the online learning due to COVID-19?
The online learning process was very useful during the pandemic, we managed to connect with professors easily and dynamically which helped us a lot to cope with the new normal. I was already familiar with the online procedure, all the tools that l needed to use, the system l needed to adopt in studying and all of this was because at EMUNI we already study online so it was very beneficial and time-saving for me.
What are your next plans as a student and in your career?
Now, I need to finish the thesis and to start working in the field that I used to work at since 2015 which the digital communication of sports organisations but with more academic experiences. Also, I would like to start helping my family and compensate them for their endless help and support. I would like also to go back to Egypt soon once the airports are open.
