While Brandeis is always loud with the bustle of busy students running from classes to clubs, the summer is filled with silence. Without the clubs and friend groups of a traditional academic year, the summer is the time when Brandeis is eerily quiet. In this editorial, we aim to provide some pieces of advice to those of you spending the next few months in Waltham.

First, we acknowledge that it can be easy to become absorbed in your studies without the usual clubs and campus events. While focusing on studies is important as a student, the board urges you to spend some time thinking about potential hobbies or activities that will allow you to find a work-life balance when the clubs you usually enjoy are not in session.

We would also like to touch on the lack of availability of dining options during the summer. Sherman Dining Hall will be your only source of sustenance for the coming months. We encourage you to work on varying your diet, as eating fresh foods like fruits and vegetables will allow you to feel better.

If you are not used to the Massachusetts summer heat, plan on spending the majority of your studying time inside. Luckily, many of the Brandeis buildings are air conditioned; that said, we recommend investing in a strong fanAlso, be sure to drink plenty of water. Dehydration can lead to fainting and dizzy spells. Be sure to wear sunscreen when outside to avoid burns!

This board would also like to urge the University to expand transportation options for the summer. Without the regularly scheduled BranVans, students are left stranded and having to walk in the heat to both classes and the dining hall. An increase in transportation would cause campus to be a more pleasant place overall.

If you are taking summer courses at Brandeis, plan ahead. There might be issues with registration so reach out ahead of time if you experience any. In contrast to other semesters, many of the summer courses are online, giving those who are not on campus during summer a chance to fulfill their major requirements or Brandeis Core requirements. 

Although Brandeis claims summer courses to be “an economical way to advance toward graduation,” since they are offered at a reduced rate compared to the normal academic year, the classes, though some of them are online, are all very expensive. Students would need to pay $3,700 for normal four-credit hour courses, $1,950 for two-credit hour courses or two-credit hour lab courses and $750 for one-credit hour courses. While the summer school tuition is high, financial aid might be hard to grant. As Brandeis offers need-based grants, scholarships and loans, there are restrictions on where it applies. Even with the high tuition fee, it is sometimes necessary for students to take the limited options of classes to graduate on-time or take the classes that are only offered during the summer.

For international students, asynchronous online classes might be beneficial if they’re in another time zone than eastern standard time , since they can watch the classes when convenient instead of getting out of bed or staying up until midnight or even later. However, the 2024 summer semester put restrictions on hiring teaching assistants. Students must be in certain states to be able to TA for classes. For example, if a student is in the state of California or outside the U.S., they are not allowed to TA for any classes. This policy might be a serious issue for international students since office hours would be scheduled in the daytime in eastern standard time. Office hours might not be available to them in normal times with no other accommodations being offered. This rule undermines the purpose of having an online summer course in the first place, leaving international students who could have completed their coursework during daytime hours to stay up incredibly late. This board encourages professors for online summer courses to try to schedule various office hours during later time periods, so office hours are more accessible to students in different time zones.

Ultimately, though the experience of taking summer courses may not be ideal, this editorial board does acknowledge that summer classes can be beneficial for many Brandeis studentsTaking courses over the summer can help to reduce courseloads during the normal academic year, thus helping to diminish some of the stress elt by students as they balance school work with clubs and other responsibilities. Only you can decide whether or not taking summer courses is the right decision for you, and we hope that the advice provided in this editorial can help you in this endeavor.

— Editor’s note: Editor Madison Sirois ’25 is employed by the Rabb School of Continuing Studies