College students across the country have headed home in recent days as their campuses have shut down to try to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

Students who thought theyd be saying goodbye for a week of spring break instead said goodbye for the year, or maybe more.

Young people studying abroad have had to pack up and come back from what was supposed to be the experience of a lifetime.

And being able to walk across the stage at graduation seems unlikely to happen this spring.

HuffPost spoke with a dozen students who are figuring out what to do from here. Schools are offering classes online, but how do you pursue a dance degree online? What about a theater degree? How do you do a science lab while sitting in your childhood bedroom and staring at a computer screen?

Students are heartbroken at missing out on little moments that make college special the annual dinner for the school newspaper, a trip for a class, senior traditions and last chances to be with friends before graduating.

But there are also more pressing concerns. How will having to go entirely online affect their professional opportunities? What will the economy look like when theyre trying to get jobs?

And for some students, where should they go when they dont have a safe place to return to on such short notice? What if their home doesnt have a Wi-Fi connection ?

Many students are also grappling with guilt at being disappointed with whats happening while knowing that theyre in a far more fortunate place than others.

Hope Schmalzried, a senior at Stanford University, described the feeling as that weight between feeling really upset and mournful, and you dont know when youre going to see your friends again, versus, this is an international crisis. Its whole countries locked down and there are a lot of populations at risk. And so its like balancing that emotional dichotomy has been really sobering.

Missing Out On Milestones