The University of Maryland has decided to deliver the rest of the fall semester online due to the surge in COVID-19 cases, ultimately impacting the availability of on-campus student resources.
According to the University of Maryland’s libraries website, access to McKeldin Library is only available by reservation. The library is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and only allows up to 20 reservations at a time. However, curbside pickup remains available for all technology equipment, calculators, tripods and more.
While the writing center is not holding in-person appointments, they host live online tutoring Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Friday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. but will be closed for finals week.
“The last day that we are open for the semester is Dec. 14,” English administrative fellow Marina Seamans said. “Up to that point, we will have our normal hours.”
Students have been made aware of the writing center closing, so they can plan accordingly.
With final exams beginning in less than a week, University of Maryland students are trying their hardest to study and finish any end-of-semester assignments while having limited access to the university’s library.
Junior journalism major Tony Cabral would visit the library every day to study for finals before the COVID-19 pandemic.
“So long as I had a quiet area and a desktop computer to work on, I would be successful in my studying,” Cabral said.
The campus libraries give students a quiet, academic environment to concentrate in. Even if you do not visit the library every day, it’s always good to know that you can go at your own leisure.
Senior kinesiology major Ebele Nwogbo visited the library periodically during finals week in the past, but she has been struggling to stay focused and prepare for finals this year.
“I have to tell myself to switch gears from relaxing or having fun to grinding out work and studying,” Nwogbo said. “I feel like it’s harder to concentrate not being in an academic environment.”
Times Higher Education created a list of six tips that will help students study online and at home. The tips include taking regular study breaks, being in constant communication with your professors and locating a place to study that is quiet with no distractions.
To accommodate students during this time, this university created a list of indoor and outdoor campus spaces for studying and tells students if the space requires a reservation.