Excited students attend first UCC on-campus lectures as pandemic restrictions ease

The 'Irish Examiner' spent time on campus at University College Cork as students finally got the chance to experience college life in person and not through a screen.

First year students who started in UCC yesterday, adding to the numbers already back in college. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

College life took another step towards some kind of normality yesterday as thousands of students began their third-level education in person and on campus.

The Irish Examiner visited University College Cork where first-year students were beginning their first week of lectures and tutorials.  

Marquees have been dotted across the campus for students to sit and socialise outside between classes, ideal for groups of students ducking the changing weather as heavy rain showers emerged as the day wore on.

Pop-up vaccination centres opened at 15 colleges across the country yesterday, with the HSE encouraging as many students as possible to take up the opportunity to get vaccinated. At UCC, the walk-in centre was based in the basement of the Kane building. 

With the campus full of life, it was a far cry from some of the eerily quiet scenes at the country's colleges this time last year when the majority of on-campus activities were curtailed. 

First year student Daragh Cronin who started back to UCC yesterday. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

“It’s amazing, loads of my friends are in the same course,” said Daragh Cronin from Blackrock who, along with his friends, sat his first day of lectures yesterday. 

"It’s my first time even in this place, it's sick [cool] to walk around and see all people that you know.

"I know a good few people in second year, we’re all freshers now as well.” 

Ruby O’Brien, a first-year arts student, attended her first in-person lecture, in a lecture hall with all students wearing masks throughout. 

First year students from left, Faye Donovan, Emma Cuthbert, Clara Richardson, Ellie O'Connor, Gillian White, and Ruby O'Brien in UCC yesterday. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

“It was really overwhelming coming in and starting in a huge new environment, but it’s exciting at the same time," she said.

When the first lockdown was called in March 2020, Ruby was in fifth year in school. 

"It was really, really hard. There was no motivation, there was nothing really outside of school.” 

Ellie O’Connor, a first-year student in commerce and French, said it was “weird” to be on campus yesterday because "it came around so quickly". 

First year student Ellie O'Connor who started in UCC yesterday. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

“I feel like with Covid, it felt like I should have been in school for a lot longer," she said.

"We literally came out of school so fast. We didn’t get to spend half the time in the physical school that I thought we would.

"The summer went by so fast, especially because we got our results so late.” 

First-year college students missed out on a lot of traditional milestones because of Covid.

"Like graduating from school, we missed out on that. The summer was nice, so we got to go out, but there were no concerts, there were no festivals, there were no holidays.”

With starting her course, there are a lot of new safety protocols to get used to. 

“For different modules, there is only a certain amount of people who can be in certain halls, so we got split up into pod A, B, and C based on our surnames," she said. "For tutorials, you can only have 20 people.”

Student guide Julia Wnek was on hand to assist the students who may have been slightly lost. 

Second-year student Julia Wnek, who acted as a guide for the first years who started back to UCC yesterday. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

"They are mainly asking me questions about the campus, where the rooms are, where locations are, about timetables," she said. 

"I know those things can be confusing when they are new.” 

She said that there is a good atmosphere on campus, however, saying: "Everyone is excited." 

Students in UCC yesterday. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

A second-year student, this is Julia's third week actually on campus at UCC, as she, along with her classmates, studied mainly online last year during Covid. 

"It was exciting to start back," she said. 

"I was kind of nervous at first because obviously I hadn’t been on the campus before, but it was really exciting and it's really fun to be back.”

Noirin Deady, the UCC first-year experiences coordinator, said the next few weeks will be about the “human side” of education.

“That will come first," she said. 

"The next couple of weeks is about students finding their place, and ensuring they are in the right place. I suppose they’ll be very excited. 

"Transition is a process, not an event, so it will take them a couple of weeks to settle. 

"It’ll take them a while to settle into their degree programme.

“There are marquees all around campus, and students have been meeting each other for coffee. In the evenings, I’ve noticed that they meet up at the marques and they’ll play music, they’ll sing songs — it’s really nice to see.” 

More info on college campus walk-in vaccination centres can be found on hse.ie