KUALA LUMPUR: Architecture student Vanessa Ang Jia Lin, 20, listens intently as her coursemates give a short presentation online on their class project involving the construction of a house model.
Then it's Ang's turn. She wraps up her presentation a few minutes later with a positive note from her lecturer.
"It's not always this smooth," she said, referring to her home's WiFi in Bukit Mertajam, Penang.
The second-year student from Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (Utar) in Bandar Sungai Long, Kajang, Selangor, was one of the lucky few who made it home before the Movement Control Order (MCO) was enforced in March.
"It was inconvenient at first. Some of our learning materials were not online. We made use of whatever materials we could find online and shared them among ourselves.
"Since the MCO, we have relied on online learning. Every week, we need to show our project's progress to our lecturers online.
"Sometimes it's hard to explain the methods that we use for our projects. Also, I feel that my lecturers may have a tough time guiding us."
For students with limited access to the Internet or had no access to a laptop, the university offered a loan programme to them, she said.
Chew Zi Hern, 20, a second-year Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Actuarial Science at Utar, said online learning was the new way to go.
"We rely so much on technology that I think the best solution is to embrace it and upgrade ourselves with computer knowledge and its applications," said Chew, who has completed a semester through online learning and coursework submission via email.
"Online learning is so much easier than having to be in class physically. It allows us the freedom to do our own learning."
Nur Hashimah Alias, 36, a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) student in chemical engineering, said her work would have to proceed, despite her not being able to return to her campus at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor, to conduct tests at the lab.
While waiting for the green light from her university, Nur Hashimah is reading journals and books, besides applying for grants for her next research.
Nur Hashimah, a senior lecturer at the Faculty of Chemical Engineering at Universiti Teknologi Mara in Shah Alam, said she had no problem adjusting to distance learning.
She said she felt fortunate to have finished most of her lab-based research before the MCO started.
In between preparing for her viva-voce (an oral examination, for academic qualification) and writing review articles for her research, she kept herself busy with online learning.
"I am using online platforms as a student and lecturer. As a lecturer, I still meet my undergraduate students and conduct technical workshops with them."
Amira Adlin Roslan, 25, a master's student in biochemistry from the Faculty of Biological Sciences at Universiti Malaya, said she welcomed the government's decision to allow students to resume lab work on campus.
"Online learning has its benefits. Joining talks online has allowed me the time and freedom to improve my writing skills as well as gather information for my research paper.
"The only thing that affects me is not being able to send my thesis on time and finishing my master's in the targeted time."
Nurul Nadhirah Ruzelan, 23, a first-year student of a master's in biochemistry and biotechnology at Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, said distance learning had put a halt to her lab work and she needed to reschedule her work plan from the beginning.
"My field of research does not allow me to do it virtually," she said, adding that she planned to finish her research in 18 months.
The Higher Education Ministry on Wednesday announced that all teaching and learning (PdP) programmes at universitites would be conducted online until Dec 31.
However, exceptions would be made for students in five categories, including post-graduate students involved in research mode in public universities and private higher learning institutions who were allowed to return to campus with immediate effect.