Abandoned and isolated: the lonely students at Covid University

While some Freshers find ways to party, others are arriving at Halls which resemble the Marie Celeste with empty flats and quiet corridors.

Students are arriving at university to learn that many students are staying at home
Students are arriving at university to learn that many students are staying at home Credit: PA

Despite the videos of some students throwing impromptu - and not-very-Covid-secure parties - the reality for most is far less dramatic.

In fact, many young people moving to university for the first time are reporting a nasty shock on arrival: the discovery that they are the only people living in their flat, their corridor or sometimes even their entire building. These students, who are moving out of home for the first time, have found they are expected to live alone, completely isolated, with no hint as to where their other flatmates are. And while some students have seen flatmates arrive after a week of social isolation, for others the situation is still going on. 

John*, who is reading History at the University of Warwick, arrived at Bluebell Halls of Residence, which are on the central campus, last Wednesday. He found flats, which are usually shared between eight, that were completely barren and empty. 

For five days, John says he was isolated inside the flat at a cost of  £198 per week; official Freshers activities had not yet begun so he had nothing to do. He would cook meals alone, and spend his days kicking around. After days of "grinning and bearing it", John decided to go home and spend time with family instead. 

The whole situation was incredibly upsetting. He says: “It felt like everything was planned to be safe Covid-wise but not to be secure and comfortable mental health wise.”

John’s mother is equally frustrated. She says that her usually independent and outgoing son has had his “confidence knocked, 100 per cent”. One solution, she points out, would be for the students in empty flats to move to more populated halls of residence but says the university is making that difficult.

Adam is also a fresher at the University of Warwick, studying Engineering. His mother, Jane, reports that he is struggling with the total isolation; His moods are so low, she says, he cannot get out of bed.

“The loneliness really hit him hard,” says Jane. “Had it gone on longer I fear he might have become depressed.” 

It was unbearable, she says, “to see my son on the verge of depression”. Whilst Jane has encouraged him to go on walks, get out and meet new people, she is in no doubt that the experience of being completely alone has massively jolted her son’s confidence. 

Jane admits she is frustrated at the university for abandoning the children, leaving them completely alone and isolated. Staggered move-in dates (a Covid-safety precaution), she points out, has meant that the university knew in advance that some students would be left completely alone for days on end but did nothing. 

And while she acknowledges that the pandemic has made everything challenging to arrange, Jane believes someone should have checked up on the students at least once. 

 The young men's stories are an uncomfortable development in an on-going problem with concerns over student depression and a mental health crisis on campus. In 2015/16 a survey by The Progressive Policy think tank found that more than 15,000 first year students disclosed a mental health condition. At Warwick university, in particular, there has been a huge increase in the number of ambulances called due to of suicide or suicide attempts; in 2016-2018, 33 ambulances were called to campus alone, according to The Boar (the University of Warwick’s independent student paper). 

That situation has been exacerbated by the Covid crisis. Government guidelines prohibit people meeting in groups larger than six, which has made socialising at university challenging. Warwick university also forbids students from bringing guests into their accommodation, or going into other people’s flats

But the problem is not limited to Warwick. Alice, whose son has just started at Manchester Metropolitan University was left distraught when her son Tom  phoned her to say, “you lied to me, university isn’t amazing, there’s no one here”. 

Freshers protest: students at Manchester Metropolitan University are fed up  
Freshers protest: students at Manchester Metropolitan University are fed up   Credit: AFP

It transpired out of a possible 11 flatmates, currently only one has turned up. Tom has been living almost completely alone, isolated since September 13th. 

“All the flats are full because people have paid for accommodation,” says Alice, “but are choosing not to turn up because everything is online.” She admits Tom has now managed to find a few friends in campus communal areas, but these are starting to close because Covid cases are spiking.

“I think my son is “going to drop out of university around Christmas time,” she says, “because of the experiences he has had. If his experiences had been different, he may well have stayed.” 

It’s not yet clear why students are being left alone for such prolonged periods of time. But many  students are choosing not to move into student accommodation because at some universities all or the majority of teaching will be taking place online. 

Staggered university move-in dates has meant some students are moving into accommodation up to a week earlier than when the next person is due to arrive. Students are not being given the contact details of any of their flatmates, so it is impossible to coordinate move-in dates or communicate with them at all in advance thus exacerbating the already isolating experience many freshers are enduring. 

Universities are beginning to wake up to this problem. A spokesperson for the University of Warwick says there has been a lot of work put into the welfare and safety of students and that  all undergraduate blocks or more than half full although it has not been possible yet to check the status of each individual flat.

He said: "All of our first year undergraduates are on campus in halls which all have residential staff to support students in those halls and flats. We urge any students who are struggling to contact those staff or our Wellbeing support team as soon as possible."

There is still time to turn first-year students' experiences around, but universities will have to act fast before it’s too late.  

*Some names have been changed

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