The COVID-19 pandemic has had a dramatic impact on many dimensions of
living and working conditions, and uncertainties about the developments that we shall
still face in the near future. This paper analyses the implications of a forced overnight
push to online teaching. Drawing upon an online survey conducted during the 2020
lockdown by the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, this article describes students'
living and studying conditions revealed by a large set of open and closed questions. The
survey provides significant information on the students' real off-campus conditions,
crucial data for the multidimensional analysis by combining non-parametric multivariate
analysis of closed questions with textual analyses. It offers important indications about
the most useful tools for inclusive teaching across thematic areas and highlights the main
difficulties that emerged during the lockdown. Reflections on advantages and
disadvantages, strengths and weaknesses in the innovative learning environment set up
overnight are offered at a policy level