When I found out I would have to do college from halfway across the world, I was excited about the experience and wanted to see if it was possible. Turns out, it’s very difficult.
I live in Pakistan which is 10 hours ahead of Massachusetts, so when its 3 p.m. in Amherst, it is actually midnight for me. So when I have an assignment due at 11:59 p.m. its actually due at 9 a.m. for me which means that if I’m doing it last minute, I literally have to pull an all-nighter. This obviously gets so confusing and I have had multiple instances when I have completely forgotten about a deadline and have to ask for extensions. You’re lucky if you have an understanding professor who will give you one.
Another difficulty I have found is that because I live with my family and I’m at home, I have family obligations and chores, so I have to be awake in the day as well. I wake up the latest by noon and my classes start at 8 p.m. and go on until 3 a.m. some days. Then I have to finish up schoolwork, homework, or quizzes if anything is due.
Meetings are usually in the evening from 6-8 p.m. in Amherst, so I have to stay up until 5 a.m. at times just to attend a 10-minute meeting which is extremely tiring. I have had to get up at 3 a.m., look presentable (whatever that means) and sit in front of a camera, just to be done after a couple of minutes. I mean come on!
Additionally, 4 out of 5 of my classes are synchronous but I have been lucky enough to actually have very understanding professors this semester. Although I do stay up to attend lectures, exams are usually conducted in the evening. So 8 p.m. exams are actually 5 a.m. exams for me in Pakistan. You can imagine how much caffeine I need just to make sure my brain stays awake.
Although office hours are spread out (thanks to my professors), there are only a couple that actually works for me. Often the time conversion gets confusing for me and if I don’t make it to an office hour I have to make an appointment that works for both me and the professors. Confusion due to office hours happens a lot, especially when I have assignments due.
Working in a different time zone isn’t always too bad. When I have friends working for an assignment that is due at midnight, mine is due 10 hours later so if I wake up early, I can still submit it before its due. And obviously, being at home has its own perks. I get to be around my family and get to experience the best of both worlds!