Differences between hybrid, online and on-campus classes?

Due to the current situation in the US, a lot of international students might be faced with different sorts of offerings by the respective universities – Hybrid, Online, and On-Campus Classes. But what exactly are the differences?

On-campus should be obvious, right? All your classes will be happening on the respective campus, in classes of however many people, all with regards to the hygiene guidelines.

Should your university only offer online classes for the next semester (Fall 2020), that means that you will not be allowed to travel to the US and you will not be eligible for a Visa. This comes, after the original decision to keep out every international student with online classes, was overturned. You might still be able to take part in distance education and have online classes from home (your home country), but you should talk to your university about that. For such online classes, you will meet on course websites or university websites, never in person. All contacts take place online.

Should your university offer hybrid classes, you are fine to get your Visa and start the US adventure. Hybrid classes will be split into online and on-campus. The way it is split will be different from college to college. Some might only offer a few face to face classes and focus on online (especially if COVID 19 doesn’t calm down too much), others might offer mostly face to face and shift only a few areas to online classes. This will always depend on where you will study and how it fits a certain class but rest assured that it will be communicated early enough.

Here’s an example of how Minnesota State Technical and Community College will try to split the semester:

Credit: Minnesota State Technical and Community College, Wadena Pioneer Journal

Hopefully, this brief overview was able to explain, what could wait for you depending on the classes your university is going to offer next semester. If you have any questions, let us know!