It has been almost a month since the University of Guam transitioned into online courses due to the spread of COVID-19 on Guam.\u00a0 Amidst adjusting to this new norm, some seniors at the University of Guam have been reacting to the change in different ways. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To prevent the spread of the virus and put in danger the seniors, doctors have decided to use portable stage trailers<\/a> to move around and be able to take care of their patients in their homes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Students\nmade the transition to the online format on March 30, 2020, and since then have\nbeen attending classes through video conferencing programs such as Zoom,\nBigBlueButton and Skype for Business. Vince Fabian, a biology major, said the\ntransition to online lecturing was smooth. He however felt that his lab courses\nwere not meant for the transition online. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fabian said\nhis class would normally conduct experiments and field work at UOG, but now his\nlabs have resorted to online modules and data analysis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAlthough\ncomputational biology\/data analysis is useful, the lack of hands-on\nexperimentation\/field work does take away a big portion of the experience,\u201d\nFabian said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fabian says\nthat in addition to the concerns he has for the classes he is taking during\nthis semester, he also worries about his plans after graduation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u201cMy initial plan prior to the effects of COVID-19\nwas to spend my summer preparing for grad school and looking for a job to take\nin my gap year,\u201d Fabian said. \u201cAlthough I still plan on doing that, I worry\nthat looking for a job during this time will be significantly harder, and if\nthis job were to be deemed non-essential, I would be unsure as to how I would\nsupport myself or my family in the coming year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition\nto this, Fabian was also concerned about his options for graduate school. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWith the\ncurrent situation nationwide, many universities have shut down and are\nuncertain when they would reopen. Some have even proposed not to open until\n2021, which would majorly affect the timeline I’ve set out for myself\ncareer-wise,\u201d Fabian said. \u201cHowever, I understand that these postponements and\nclosures are for the sake of everyone and I will do my best to adjust my\ntimeline accordingly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For\ngraduating seniors, an online commencement is scheduled for June 18, 2020 at\n7:00pm. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The virtual\nCommencement Ceremony will be livestreamed on Facebook and the UOG website. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

UOG\u2019s President Thomas Krise said in a news release by UOG, \u201cDespite the circumstances caused by the coronavirus, proceeding with a virtual commencement ceremony allows us to honor the accomplishments and perseverance of our students.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\nAccording to the same article published by UOG, Fa\u00f1omn\u00e5kan graduates will also have an option to walk in any future commencement ceremony that occurs after the end of the public health emergency. \n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

UOG’s Student Government Association President, Marc Bituin, wanted to congratulate this semester’s graduating seniors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“All their hard work, sweat and tears have finally pulled off. Especially for getting through this unusual situation and fairly new platform,” said Bituin. “We want to congratulate them for their success! To all the graduates, congratulations and good luck.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally Bituin would like to recognize SGA senators, Darlene Gatchalian and Lilian Billimon for their exemplary service. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It has been almost a month since the University of Guam transitioned into online courses due to the spread of COVID-19 on Guam.\u00a0 Amidst adjusting to this new norm, some seniors at the University of Guam have been reacting to the change in different ways. To prevent the spread of the virus and put in … <\/p>\n

Read more “Seniors respond to COVID-19 outbreak”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":136,"featured_media":6116,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,12],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[250],"yoast_head":"\n