‘I’m so exhausted and drained’: Student’s tweet on struggles of university life during covid goes viral

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A university student's tweet about the difficulties of studying during the pandemic has gone viral.

Kiera Murrell, a second-year psychology student at Bournemouth University, said she was "exhausted and drained" in a post earlier this week that has since garnered over 179,000 likes.

In the new national lockdown in England, the majority of students will be taking classes remotely, with in-person teaching for just a small proportion of courses (like medicine). The government is asking most students to stay where they are, meaning those who went home for Christmas should not to come back to their university campus until at least mid-February.

Murrell posted a picture of herself looking distressed and wrote: "In case anybody wondered how it looked or felt to be a university student in a pandemic – it looks like this. I am so exhausted and drained", adding that she had spent her afternoon "crying into a Terry's chocolate orange".

The student claimed she had not received "one bit" of support from her university, and claimed that the teaching now available - for which she pays £9,250 per year - was "nowhere near the quality it should be".

The second-year believes that students have been unfairly branded lazy rule-breakers during the pandemic. She wrote: "Not all students are lazy, or have broken rules, and have attended parties, some of just want some real support".

Murrell said that some of her friends "haven't been home in months", spent Christmas away from their families and are now living in their university city alone.

In a follow-up tweet, she wrote: "Thank you to everybody who has shared this. It’s so important to talk about how we, as students are doing in these circumstances. Universities are not mentioned nearly as much as other fields of education. It’s not right, it’s not fair. Please check up on your fellow students".

During freshers week last year, many students around the UK were made to quarantine in their flats in halls of residence after Covid outbreaks. Many complained of a lack of support from their university, and reported struggling with isolation when living away from home for the first time. 

When contacted by The Independent, a spokesperson for Bournemouth University, where Murrell is a student, said that "significant support"  had been put in place to help students and aid their learning. They said: "Messages have been sent to students on a very regular basis and a range of information and guidance is available on the BU website and student portal. We would encourage any student needing support to contact our AskBU service or their academic adviser."