IntoGrad

With university students having returned from their Christmas vacations last week, government officials and experts in the statistics of disease have warned of major outbreaks of the Omicron variant on university campuses in the near future.

If you have ever interacted with university students, you will likely have heard of a phenomenon known as ‘Fresher’s Flu’, a large spike in cases of infectious disease that occurs after students return to their university city from all over the world, bringing a host of pathogens with them. This same phenomenon, it is expected, may well happen at the end of January, if the cross-exposure of individual students to SARS-CoV-2 variants, such as the present Omicron and Delta variants, leads to a spike in COVID cases among university age students after the virus’ incubation period.

Furthermore, this spike in cases will likely be exacerbated by the fact that thousands of UK university students are not yet eligible for their booster vaccine given how recently most 18-21 year-olds received their second dose. This means that the relative immunity of the average undergraduate student will likely be lower than those between the ages of 22-30, leading to a more vulnerable student population.

To read more about the predicted spike in Omicron cases in UK universities and the impacts it is expected to have on teaching, please visit: https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/major-outbreaks-omicron-likely-uk-campuses-warn-experts.

IntoGrad is a postgraduate mentoring initiative for undergraduates students looking to find the right postgraduate course for themselves.

Whether you’re thinking of applying to law, economics, biosciences or engineering, one thing is for certain: postgraduate applications are fraught with difficulties. The large variety of specialised postgraduate programmes which top universities offer can make it difficult for a university student to shortlist the courses best suited for them and their career. And to add on to that, concepts of funding and research work can confuse even the most well-informed applicant.

By joining as a mentee, you will receive one-on-one support and mentoring from an IntoGrad mentor who has gone through the application experience of the particular university (or programme) that you are interested in, and can offer their knowledge on how to apply successfully to that course / university.

More than that, you’ll be part of a postgraduate network that provides you with resources that you can use for your postgraduate applications, and in preparation for postgraduate life!

Sign up today at https://www.intograd.org/find-a-mentor!