In the midst of fall semester, many students’ to-do lists are piling up with papers, projects, and homework. With packed schedules and assignment lists that are miles long, students have been longing for just one more hour of sleep. The early morning of Nov. 2, 2025, made that wish come true. Clocks “fell back” one hour, giving most of the U.S. that one more hour they desperately desired. This moment of bliss was short-lived, however. The days following the time change were not frabjous; in fact, they were quite the opposite.
Students enrolled in night classes have felt the most upheaval following the time change. As the sun now sets around 5:00 in the afternoon, many night class takers have found themselves getting lost due to lacking the ability to see properly. “I was trying to get to my class in the Murphy Center, but I ended up in the Box Office instead,” exclaims Jillian Islost, a fourth-year student.
Islost is not the only one. Many others have accidentally found themselves in the wrong building and subsequently became late for their classes. Islost adds that professors do not consider this an excused tardiness, and her attendance grade has suffered. “It’s hypocritical. [My professor] has been late because of the same thing, and we’re expected to acknowledge it as a simple mistake and just move on. But when it happens to us students, it’s irresponsible and our grades start to tank!”
Even students who are not getting lost are struggling to adjust to the time change. Carl Fromaz, a first-year student from Arizona, tells the Lumen, “[i]t’s just so hard to get used to. I’ll take a nap and when I wake up, it’ll be pitch black outside. It makes me think I missed my class! Daylight savings is blasphemous if you ask me.”
People are not the only ones getting confused. There have been multiple reports of students and faculty running into nocturnal animals on their way to night classes. Many have complained about collisions with opossums, galagos, and owls. The biggest culprit, however, is bats. According to a recently conducted survey, 54 students have reported running into a bat after dark following the time change. “It’s horrible,” Bryan Nobats, a third-year student at Viterbo, says. “It’s bad enough that I have to walk to class after dark. I don’t need a bunch of confused bats flying into my face too!”
We were eventually able to have a conversation with one of these bats about the issue. The bat, who wishes to remain anonymous, is adamant that they are not confused at all. “I don’t care what classes students have to walk to,” says the bat. “It’s not our fault you humans decided to change the time!”
Daylight savings time is a huge adjustment for humans and bats alike. We are keeping close attention to this newfound rivalry between bats and students taking night classes.
