Students reveal plans as NSW universities return to face-to-face learning
Face-to-face learning is set to return to universities across NSW this month, as tens of thousands of students pour into campuses for the first time in months. Here are some of their stories.
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Tens of thousands of university students are set to be welcomed into campuses across the state this month — as face-to-face classes also resume.
To celebrate the start of semester one, NewsLocal reporters have visited students as they return to the classroom to have their say on what to expect for this year’s studies.
UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, SYDNEY
Mustafa Al-Saeedi – Law & Business, Third Year
Third-year student Mustafa studies law and business at UTS, and is looking forward to being able to return to campus and classrooms.
“I’m really keen,” he said. “Because I didn’t really get the experience in the first two years, it was all mostly online.
“It feels a bit like my first year at university to be honest.”
Why UTS? It runs in the family.
“My mum went to UTS,” Mustafa said. “My mum studied nursing here.”
Orlando Iliopoulos – Design & Architecture, First Year
Orlando is a first-year student at UTS studying for a bachelor in design and architecture.
He’s happy that – with restrictions now easing and face-to-face teaching returning – he’s able to go into campus and study.
“I think university exists for both the educational and social aspects,” Orlando said.
“So to be able to get that well-rounded education is something that I’m really happy about.
“I have friends who started studying over the last two years, and they’ve been disappointed to have missed out going into campus.”
He picked UTS for its architectural course.
“The course here at UTS is very hands-on,” Orlando said.
“And I think that compliments the return to face-to-face teaching.”
Alex Bahn – Communications, Second Year
Alex is a second-year student at the university’s renowned communications and journalism school, he’s excited for the return to campus.
“I’m thrilled to be back,” Alex said.
“I think that the online teaching we had worked, but it’s just really nice to be back to be honest.”
Alex explained that he almost stumbled upon UTS, and he’s happy he did so.
“We had all these open days online,” he explained.
“I actually mistakenly came past UTS and it had an open day.
“I really loved the look of it, and the people who were there we’re really willing to talk with me and tell me about the course – which made me really excited about studying here.”
UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY
Izzy Gee – Media and Communications, Second Year – Robbie Ward – Medical science, Second Year
Izzy and Robbie are both second-year students at the University of Sydney, studying communications and medical science respectively.
Sitting in front of the iconic and beautiful university main quad, they said they decided to go to USyd for a variety of reasons.
“Look at it,” Izzy said while gesturing around the quad, “it’s a beautiful campus.”
“Everyone is just wicked smart too.”
Robbie said that the campus adds to the atmosphere of the place.
“It’s just a beautiful university,” Robbie said.
“And there’s a real social aspect, it’s a very open campus and you can talk and mingle.”
Both are keen to ditch Zoom for the lecture hall.
“I’m looking forward to it, I was getting really bored of online university,” Robbie said.
“I’m excited to be able to meet new people.”
Mia Musgrove – Education, Second Year – Anabel Withy – Medical Sciences, Fourth Year
Mia, a second-year education student, and Anabel, a fourth-year honours student in medical sciences, are both looking forward to the return of face-to-face teaching at USyd.
It was bucketing it down on campus, but both would rather that than be sitting on a laptop again.
“I’m so sick of Zoom,” Anabel said.
“I’m tired of just waking up and heading straight onto my computer – and even though it’s raining, it’s nice to be on campus and see people.”
Mia echoed that sentiment and is keen to be able to see her classmates.
“It was quite isolating being online for the majority of my first year,” she said.
“University is also about the friendships you make.
“So I think it’s really nice to be back on campus, getting to know a lot more people on my course.”
ACU BLACKTOWN
Oskar Staniucha
Oskar is a 19-year old student in his second year studying at ACU, and is a student leader. He is studying High Performance Sport at university and says he chose ACU, Blacktown largely because of its convenience.
“I chose ACU largely because of the convenience. Being from Kingswood it is so convenient to catch the train and get to the Blacktown campus.
“I wanted to study high performance sport as I have been a swimmer my whole life and am really interested in the mathematics and science behind high performance sport and it is what I have wanted to get into my whole life.”
He says while his focus remains on study, he has high aspirations on where this course can take him with hopes to coach at International level.
“At the moment my long term dream goal is to be a swim coach for Australia but even to work as a data analyst for a Rugby League team or in swimming would be the ultimate goal. Honestly I just want to work around sport.”
The 19-year old has no concerns on the return to face-to-face learning but says he didn’t mind learning online in his first year.
“I am feeling good with face-to-face learning but I am 100 per cent fine with it being online and I have had no issues with online learning in my first year.”
Bella Hudson
21-year old Bella is about to go into her first year of a Bachelor of Nursing at ACU and said that the location was a deciding factor.
“I picked ACU Blacktown as it is close to home and convenient to get to. In the future I am hoping to go into cosmetic nursing but more importantly I want to have a university degree behind me.”
She said that one of the major appeals of nursing is the range of career options from one degree and is excited to return to face-to-face learning.
“I’m looking to do nursing and then branch into cosmetic nursing but there are so many pathways I can go down so I am not entirely sure yet as I have also worked in birth units and really enjoyed it. I am just excited to start studying,” Bella said.
“I prefer coming in face-to-face as it is easier to be motivated when you are learning face-to-face so I am glad that I can come to campus to learn.”
Sarah Webb
Sarah is a 17-year old who is about to start studying nursing and says she chose ACU, Blacktown due to its great reputation at her high school.
“ACU Blacktown has a good reputation and it was highly spoken of by staff and students at my high school and it was also easy to access for me.
“I’ve always had my mind set on going to uni, whether it is teaching or nursing as I just want to help people,” said Sarah.
“Doing nursing will allow me not only to be a registered nurse but I can then specialise from there. I’ve always wanted to work with kids as well so that is a potential avenue I will go down.”
Sarah said she was also keen to return to face-to-face learning after Year 12 was largely online.
“I am glad I can do face-to-face learning and look forward to that after last year. I feel you understand the content more and can access help easier when you are face-to-face, so I am excited for that.”
Ashley Greening
Ashley is also about to go into her first year studying Nursing at ACU and only has heard good things about ACU.
“Personally I chose ACU Blacktown because my sister also studied at ACU’s North Sydney campus. From seeing her experience, the whole university program and everything about it seemed really positive.
“Our high school had partnerships and diplomas through ACU and our school always spoke very highly of ACU and really honestly. They honed in on both the positives and negatives of both the course and ACU and really when I looked at it there weren’t really any negatives. The really big plus was travel times. With travel times it can be really annoying if you have to travel a long way to and from, so ACU Blacktown being so close to home was a big plus as well.”
Sarah says while it wasn’t an expectation for her to go to university, she believes it offers a great pathway to a job that she can make a good living off of.
“In my family both my sister and my brother went to university and it wasn’t that my parents expected me to go to university but uni just offers such a good pathway to a decent job that you can make a living off. Especially since I wanted to study nursing it was perfect as ACU has such a great nursing reputation,” said Sarah
“I am excited to study nursing as it is always what I wanted to do. My sister studied nursing and she had such a positive experience. I am hoping to work for a few years and then go into paramedicine or emergency room work where the situation changes and every day is a challenge.
“I am also excited to come to uni and start fresh after a tough last couple of years learning online.”
Alyssa Youngman
Alyssa is about to go into her first year of studying Nursing at ACU’s Blacktown campus and she is excited by being one of the first students at the new ACU Blacktown campus.
“For me I was enticed to ACU Blacktown as the brand new facility was really exciting and also being one of the first people to study at this campus I thought was so good. The location also being so close to the station was ideal and ACU had such a great reputation it was an easy decision.
“I was always very set on doing university and going to uni was the best way to get into the nursing industry as quickly as possible.”
While Alyssa isn’t completely sure where her future in nursing lies, she is excited for the potential opportunities.
“I haven’t decided exactly where I want to work but I want to get into the hospital and try to also do things outside of the hospital down the track such as paramedicine and aged care,” said Alyssa.
“I am excited for the year ahead as I have always preferred face-to-face learning but love that the lectures are online so I can structure my studies around my life.”
Mia Hosking
Mia is a first year student at ACU Blacktown studying nursing and cannot wait to get started as she has had many friends and family study at ACU.
“I am excited for the year ahead. I had a lot of family friends go through ACU in North Sydney and Strathfield and they all came out really well informed and confident going into their career. The brand new facility at Blacktown for me is so nice as it will have all the up to date equipment which is ideal to learn on before you go into hospitals,” she said.
“I chose ACU Blacktown after weighing up pros and cons from the offers I had. With the time I will save in travelling from other universities it was just an obvious choice, especially since it is so close to the train station.”
While originally unsure if she wanted to pursue university, Mia was ultimately persuaded by the need for more nurses.
“I personally wasn’t sure if I wanted to go to uni and I was tossing up between nursing and fire and rescue. I just really enjoyed nursing in school and ultimately looked at it as we need more nurses.
“As a whole nursing seemed like the more stable and rewarding career path for me right now and I just feel like I would be more fulfilled doing nursing than anything else,” said Sarah.
Cameron Legg
Cameron is set to start his Bachelor of Exercise and Sports science in 2022 and chose ACU as it is close to where he trains in trampolining.
“I chose ACU Blacktown due to its convenience. It is in the middle of everything for me as I train pretty much everyday in trampolining nearby, where I also work, so it just made sense for me.”
Despite harbouring an interest in maybe becoming a pilot one day, Cameron saw the course as a smart back up option.
“I am studying as a back up plan and it seemed the easiest route out of high school. My ideal future job is being a pilot so this is a back up plan for me. I am looking at possibly doing that after university. I am hoping this course can get me into some form of coaching and with a sports team.”
After a challenging last two years of school, Cameron is just keen to get back to learning in person.
“I am looking forward to this year as I much prefer learning face-to-face. After coming from year 11 and 12 at home, learning in person is so much better for the social aspects and being able to concentrate and take in what is being taught. Overall it is just more efficient. It also adds another aspect from my life rather than just working from home.”
Caitlin Christie
21-year old Caitlin decided to take on the challenge of starting a Bachelor of Exercise and Sport science while she continues to train as an acrobat as since her sport isn’t an Olympic sport she feels she has achieved as much as she can.
“I chose to study here as it is close to both where I train as an acrobat and to where I live, so it just made sense.
“I competed for Australia in 2018 in acrobatic gymnastics and since it is not an Olympic sport I can’t really go any further in that career, so I want to get into the high performance aspect, possibly even high performance management. I hope to eventually be able to work as part of a sporting team and in sporting management,” said Caitlin.
While Caitlin never has had to study full time online, she didn’t enjoy a taste of online learning, when she underwent recent coaching accreditation so is glad that she won’t have to complete her Bachelor of Sport and Exercise science degree solely online.
“I wouldn’t say I am concerned with face-to-face learning as I am a mature aged student since I haven’t studied for 3 years. For me it is more about having to get back into the routine of learning with assignments and school workload, for me that will be more of a challenge.
“Personally I prefer to be in person when I learn. I recently did an international coaching accreditation course over zoom and I struggled with that being all online, so I think I would struggle if I had to do uni just online.”
Lleyton Pagett
Lleyton is starting university after taking a few years break after completing his HSC. The 21-year old is set to start a Bachelor of Exercise and Sports science and says studying at ACU Blacktown was the smart choice.
“I chose ACU Blacktown as it is convenient to where I live and I heard all about the new campus and buildings and state of the art facilities. I would say that is what really convinced me and excites me.
“Also being surrounded by physios and hearing about student placements and where this course can take me just sold me on going to uni.”
While Lleyton has never had to study online, he appreciates the difficulties and believes face-to-face learning is more his style.
“I am coming back to learning after a few years out of school so Covid never interrupted my learning, so I have never had anything that wasn’t face-to-face. I do prefer face-to-face as it helps you be more in the moment and listen, focus and take in what is being said so I am really glad I don’t have to learn online in 2022. I am also a people person so a face-to-face learning environment is much better suited to my learning style.”
CHARLES STURT UNIVERSITY – PORT MACQUARIE
Kelly Butler, Emily Rudder, Jade Blake, Jessica Dickinson, and Matthew Dunne are part of the first year cohort studying a Bachelor of Social Work at Charles Sturt University (CSU) in Port Macquarie this semester.
The degree is also integrated through TAFE NSW, where the students will earn the additional qualification of a Diploma of Community Services.
Matthew said the Tafe integration is one of the reasons he picked CSU.
“It’s a good transition from TAFE to university, and finishing with double the qualifications is just great,” he said.
Jessica echoed Matthew, saying she’s keen to get stuck into her tertiary studies.
“I’m excited to start gaining knowledge and getting into the subjects,” she said.
“This degree allows me to study an area I’m really passionate about – I’ve always wanted to do this course,” added classmate Jade.
The students are keen to be learning in-person once again, with many of them saying they’ve
struggled with the move to online study amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I think face-to-face learning offers a better opportunity to take everything in and connect with one another,” Kelly said.
“I definitely prefer face-to-face learning, I feel a lot more supported than when I was studying by distance,” Emily added.
UNSW
Students returning to Randwick’s University of NSW campus for the new academic calendar shared their excitement, eagerness and relief to have (hopefully) arrived at the tail end of a very strange couple of years.
Classmates Natalie Liu and Ishaan Vellani, both second year students studying a double bachelor degree of music and science, could not wait for face-to-face learning to restart.
Ms Liu said she’s excited to be back at an extremely social university where she made many friends and joined several clubs.
“It’s good to be back,” she said.
“Most of my classes are in person now, and I feel like I like having class gives me something to do because the two-month holiday was terrifying – I had nowhere to be, nothing to do.
Ms Liu chose UNSW because it was one of the few unis that offered her double degree and said she plans to do a masters in music therapy because she loves the combination of psychology and music.
Despite Mr Vellani not being new to university, Ms Liu was the only friend he made in first year because he was barely on campus.
“It wasn’t really two months off campus, it was like a year off,” he said.
“I’d done the whole online thing in year 12, so it wasn’t new, but it’s just really great to be here. I’ve designed my timetable to specially to get to know more people and everyone says everyone at university is really nice so I’m excited for that.”
The saxophone, keyboard and clarinet player (who self-admittedly “plays a bit of everything”) was excited to keep studying something that was also his passion.
Computer science and mathematics students, Dominic Yeap-Holliday and his friend Ashley Clayton, agreed that in-person learning was a far better than online lessons.
After transferring from another university because he felt it was too easy, second-year-student Mr Clayton was ready for a challenge.
“I am excited about UNSW,” the computer software engineer hopeful said.
“There’s a bigger campus, I’m meeting people, there are very difficult subjects. I should I be more concerned about Covid but I just want to meet people – online is impersonal.”
This view was echoed by a busy Mr Yeap-Holliday, who is a member of an underwater scuba diving club and musical theatre.
He said he’s already feeling “a bit overwhelmed” by his second year subjects but he had felt a little slack over the holidays and was glad to be back.
It was UNSW’s exchange program that enticed first year Actuarial science and mathematics student Jaime Cheung.
She said Orientation week was incredibly fun and could not have imagined not having the social aspect to welcome her to university.
“The lectures, tutorials and everything are so much better when you’re in person, she said.
For second year international media student Erica Zhu, a combination of online and face-to-face learning would be ideal. She loved that she gets to meet people from so many cultural backgrounds at UNSW but already missed the convenience of online learning.
Not many students NewsLocal spoke to had to travel as far as fourth year science and law student Selina Ta – but even she was glad to be back on campus.
“I do live 1.5 hours away in northwest but it’s nice to be back,” she said, adding she chose UNSW because she feels the lectures are more discussion-based than most other unis.
“I think I prefer a mix. Online learning has more flexibility but you can get easily distracted. I don’t have a combination because classes require me to be on campus.
“But I’m excited to see all the people who you really like that you wouldn’t meet up with necessarily one-on-one.”
WESTERN SYDNEY UNIVERSITY
Declan Pajtler
‘Welcome Week’ is set to start on February 28 for Western Sydney University campuses in Penrith, but enthusiastic students are already gearing up for classes.
Declan Pajtler, 18, is set to start a four-year Bachelor of Criminology at Kingswood Campus when semester starts on March 7.
“Originally I wanted to do a history degree but I’ve always had an interest in criminal psychology so when I saw WSU was offering it, I picked it straight away,” Mr Pajtler said.
The Hazelbrook teen is looking forward to ‘Welcome Week’ and uni life.
“I can’t wait to meet new faces and make new friends,” he said.
The Blue Mountains young gun sees himself in the academic realm for the long haul.
“In 5 years time, I’ll probably be doing Masters degree as I’m looking to go into forensic psychology, which I’ll probably do at WSU,” he said.
WESTERN SYDNEY UNIVERSITY, PARRAMATTA
Tara Hughes – Law and criminology, First Year
The public’s fascination with crime not only keeps them tuned into the news but is driving vocations, such as Tara Hughes’ five-year university course.
“I’ve always kind of been interested in crime and loved legal studies,’’ 18-year-old said.
“I always wanted to be a police officer when I was younger but I loved learning so I wanted to do something a bit more academic.’’
She is studying at Western Sydney University’s Parramatta south campus, where she visited for an open day with her friend Brodie Douglas, whom she went to school with at Wyndham College.
The Quakers Hill school was on the same campus as the Nirimba university, which proved a stepping stone for her tertiary studies.
“I got a scholarship, which was a big part of it and I just liked the people and they way they taught law.
“I’ve got a lot of different ideas and will see where it takes me. I don’t want to concrete anything in; I just want to learn first.’’
She is happy that campus learning has returned, though many of her lectures remain online.
Brodie Douglas, Primary Education, First Year
Kellyville Ridge’s Brodie Douglas knew she wanted to be a primary school teacher since she was young.
“Ever since I was a little girl I wanted to do something involving little kids,’’ the 18-year-old said.
Miss Douglas will study part time for five years so she can work part time at a cafe in Rouse Hill to help pay for her university fees.
She is “grateful” traditional learning has returned to campuses.
Charlie Worthington, Construction Management, First Year
Under-20s Waratah fly-half Charlie Worthington has a promising rugby career ahead of him but knows his time on the field will be limited so enrolled in university to fall back on when it’s time to hang up the footy boots.
“I’ve done scaffolding, labouring, carpet laying, tiling and I really enjoy the construction industry.’’
The Bondi student, who also plays for Randwick District Rugby Union Club, will study four years full time.
“I didn’t get into UNSW, that was my preferred choice. This (Parramatta) was last minute but I’m happy I still got a shot at doing this course.’’
Amal Safa, Social Work, First Year
It’s only fitting lockdowns have been lifted and Amal Safa gets to study social work on campus instead of remotely.
“I’ve always had a passion for people, making new friendships, relationships and I’ve always been a social person,’’ the Bexley 18-year-old said.
“All my courses are actually on campus at the moment. Face-to-face was a bit hard at school.’’
The former Georges River College Oatley graduate was “nervous but excited” about beginning university, where she will study four days a week.
“I’m hoping to get into health care and help people mentally and physically,’’ she said.
Taine Baron, Creative Industries, First Year
Aspiring author Taine Baron’s course will also take in journalism and allow him to transfer his ideas from pen to paper.
“I hope to be an author if I could,’’ he said, adding that he wants to pursue fiction.
“I’d definitely like to push that pathway.’’
The Glenwood student, who will study three years full time, has welcomed the return of studying on campus.
“It’s definitely good having the option now,’’ he said.
“Doing it from high school during lockdown, that was hard. It’s definitely nice to have the campus open.’’
Cindy Davaadorj, Bachelor of Nursing, First Year
Over the past two years, the pandemic has highlighted how crucial nurses are in the community but for Mongolian national Cindy Davaadorj, 24, it was when her son fell ill that reinforced she made the right career choice.
“I want to work at the Westmead Children’s Hospital, possibly in the intensive care unit,’’ she said. “These are my hopes. When my baby had an emergency, they were such a great help.
“When I first wanted to do nursing, I wanted to go into paediatric care.’’
The Wentworth Point student relocated to Australia three years ago with her husband so she could study nursing. When her son was born, she opted to study in 2022 and is looking forward to the return of physical learning.
“Although I do appreciate my lectures are online so I can stay home with my son and multitask, because nursing is such a practical major I’m happy to get hands-on experience especially with my placements.’’
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