Evolution of the Perceived Impact of the Pandemic on University Students

Abstract

The Coronavirus pandemic has taken the world hostage. All aspects of society have been affected, including the education system with the closure of universities and the adoption of abrupt measures to continue offering university programs virtually. Unexpectedly, the difficult situation has continued until at least December 2021. This paper studies the evolution of the perceived impact of the pandemic on students over four semesters, from Winter 2020 to Fall 2021. A survey conducted at the end of each semester captured the evolution of the impact felt by students. Using Text Mining and Sentiment Analysis, per semester, per gender and per age category, the progression of certain sentiments was identified. The study reveals that the professor’s attitude and support was a key element at the beginning of the pandemic and for many, it has been a good learning experience overall. The loss of direct/in person communication has been strongly felt and it got worse as time progresses. The level of negative comments seems to decrease over time for Female students, while for Male students, it tends to increase. Students from different age groups also reacted differently. Students in the most prevalent age group from age 25 to 30 show at first a decline in the proportion of negative comments followed by an increase, while older students from the 30 to 35 age group have a steady decrease of negativity.