The last year has made us all weary and drained, however hope is near. As of April 16, 2.2 million (mn.gov) eligible Minnesotans have had at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Some of those doses have gone to Hamline students. However, appointments have been difficult to find, and some students wish for more support from the university to help find appointments.

Carly Arneson and Tjessa Arradondo, both first-year students, have not been vaccinated yet.

“I’d ideally get vaccinated as soon as possible, but I’m waiting until I can get an appointment closer to my hometown in Wisconsin,” Arneson said.

Arradondo expressed that finding a place to get vaccinated has been challenging.

“It’s been difficult to find appointments,” Arradondo said. “I’ve tried to contact a few clinics and appointments are fully booked.”

First-year student Liam Schwartz has received his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and will receive his second dose in a couple of weeks.

“I scheduled the appointment through my home provider’s patient portal and it was pretty slick,” Schwartz said.

Some emails have been sent from the university regarding an opportunity at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds to get vaccinated. Many students are unclear of the details.

“I’ve heard about the event, but I know it’s random selection,” Schwartz said.

There are also students who did not even know the event was happening.

“I haven’t heard about the event actually,” Arradondo said. “I think Hamline could inform students better about how to find these opportunities.”

Some students feel as though Hamline is supporting them enough through this process.

“I think Hamline has done a pretty good job getting information out to students,” Arneson said.

And some students feel they could be doing more to make information more clear.

“I know there are some locations such as the state fair one opening around the cities for people looking to get vaccinated and I think Hamline could inform students better about how to find these opportunities,” Arradondo said. “They should make the information more noticeable since students who can’t access vaccinations right now, like myself, are struggling to set up appointments and aren’t aware of how or where to start.”

Feeling lost about the process of getting vaccinated is a common feeling among students.

“I don’t think Hamline is doing enough at all to help students find vaccines,” Schwartz said. “They should communicate with students about opportunities and resources to schedule appointments.

The mass vaccination site at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds is up and running. This event is by appointment only and the first step to getting an appointment is by signing up for Minnesota’s Vaccine Connector. Appointments are hard to find as everyone 16 years old and older is now eligible in Minnesota, but there are many online tools available to help aid the process. The website Vaccine Finder is a great tool, as well as calling and looking online at pharmacies and stores offering the vaccine.