After over one year of COVID-19, the world is finally seeing some light at the end of the tunnel. Vaccine roll-out is well underway, and many individuals are getting their hands on appointments to get their doses within the coming months. Despite frequent debate on the efficiency of individual vaccines and the fear behind what many feel is rushed science, people are just excited to be one step closer to a “normal” life. 

A question that has been asked time and time again by college students is: what will school begin to look like in the coming months? Will there be a requirement to get vaccinated before returning to campus for the fall semester? What have we been missing out on for the year and a half since COVID-19 took over all of our lives?

In general, it would not really be a surprise if a COVID-19 vaccination became a requirement in order to return to campus in the fall. When looking at most grade schools, there are certain vaccination requirements that need to be met before a child goes back to school in late August and early September. This is for the safety of the child, their peers and the faculty of the school — something that, in general, is incredibly fair. Adding a COVID-19 vaccine to that list for those who are eligible would not be anything absurd, and if anything, would just make it safer for everyone on campus.

In the terms of what “normality” we will be going to, that is still up in the air. There is no firm assumption of what college will look like in the coming months, especially as case numbers fluctuate and vaccination numbers go up. It is safe to say, though, that whatever changes we do see will allow for more in-person social interaction. If we throw in the possibility of students having to be vaccinated, it could also be a fair assumption that as more events come to fruition, the general anxiety of attending these events will go down. The less likely individuals are to get sick by going to public events, the more likely they are to attend and have an enjoyable time. 

Although everything is still very up in the air, hope is rising. With more people getting vaccinated, it is safe to say that there will be more and more public events to attend, and less anxieties surround these events as time goes on. The hope is that, come the fall semester, we will be able to return to some form of normalcy that we have been missing for over a year.