What is Virtual RC like?

We have been offering remote participation in batches since 2020. Since then, people have attended RC from just about every time zone and dozens of different countries. If you do a remote batch of RC, you are making the same commitment as anyone doing a batch at the Hub: to participate fully during our core hours, to follow the self-directives, and to hopefully do some of the best programming of your life with other smart, kind, curious people.

What attending remotely is like

We have lots of ways to help you find people to collaborate with, share your work, and make the most of your time here, no matter how you attend!

We onboard all Recursers together online on the first day of their batches. We use Zoom for live meetings, and many events (and all of our core batch events) at RC are hybrid, so you'll be able to give demos and presentations, pair program, and host and attend events from wherever you are in the world. There have been wonderful collaborations between people at the Hub and people attending remotely, including an LED hat that lets you play Frogger with a friend.

As a remote Recurser, we encourage you to figure out ways to interact with your batch both synchronously and asynchronously. You'll have lots of opportunities to pair and meet other Recursers, and should be proactive about reaching out to people to chat.

The RC community largely keeps in touch via Zulip, the chat platform we've used for most of RC's history. All Recursers have access, and it's a great place to float an idea for a reading group, organize an event, ask a question, share what you've been working on, or plan a meetup near you.

Though batch sizes vary, you can usually expect 15-20 people to be attending a batch of RC remotely at any given time. There are also many alums who are active on Zulip and come to online meetings occasionally.

You'll be welcome to chat with faculty about your retreat and your career, and can access our career services at any time.

You'll attend RC during our core hours of Monday through Friday, 11am to 5pm ET. Our attendance expectations are the same no matter how you attend RC: that RC is your main commitment during your retreat, and that you join your batch online during our core hours. If you need to miss a day because you're sick or are late because of an appointment or emergency, that's okay, though the first and last days of your batch are mandatory.

If you have a job or are in school, you should wait and do a batch when you're free, even if your work or school hours don't overlap with RC's. You need time to sleep and eat, and if you are fully participating in RC, it should be as demanding as working a full-time job.

Should I do RC remotely?

The day-to-day experience of attending RC remotely vs. attending in-person is quite different. If you're thinking about attending RC remotely, we encourage you to consider the following points. These aren't meant to discourage you; hundreds of people have had wonderful experiences doing RC remotely. But it is harder, and we want people to be prepared for what they're getting into.

Do you genuinely enjoy working remotely, and have you done so before?

If you’re applying to attend remotely, you should enjoy working remotely and have done so successfully. The remote RC experience is even less structured than the in-person one, so it demands a high degree of self-direction. We expect you to treat RC like you would a full-time job: to show up for it fully during the hours you've committed to being here.

Are you very self-directed?

Part of what makes RC special is the possibility of serendipitous encounters leading to new interests, projects, collaborations, and avenues of intellectual inquiry. You’ll get the most out of attending remotely if you’re comfortable creating your own structure and actively seeking out connection with other Recursers.

Doing that online is harder. You can't get an ambient sense of what's going on with everyone nearly as easily online as you can at the Hub, and it takes more effort to start conversations. People who have the best experiences are vocal about what they're working on both synchronously (coming to virtual events, pairing, presenting) and asynchronously (blogging, sharing check-ins on Zulip), and take the time to keep up with batchmates and reach out to them proactively to work together.

Can you attend during our core hours?

Our core hours (Monday-Friday, 11am to 5pm ET) are the same for everyone who's in batch, so you might be attending early in the morning or later at night, depending on where you are in the world. We have had people do RC from time zones from GMT -7 to GMT +8, but most people (including the faculty) are in ET. Depending on where you are in the world, this may require you to shift your schedule around, and you should carefully consider whether you can sustain that for 6 to 12 weeks before applying.

Are you able to fully immerse yourself in a batch right now?

Attending RC remotely is still a full-time commitment, and regardless of how you attend, you won't get the most out of it if you're distracted by other obligations. Do you have a space to work, reliable internet, and enough time and headspace to dedicate to working at the edge of your abilities, building your volitional muscles, and learning generously? If not—say, if you have part-time work or school, children you're responsible for during our core hours, or are actively interviewing for jobs—it's better to wait and do RC when you have the space in your life for it. You're making a commitment to your own growth and learning by doing RC, and doing it halfway is worse than not making the commitment at all.

Are you able to visit our Hub at all?

If you absolutely can't get to New York but can make a full commitment to your batch and enjoy working remotely, remote RC is probably the right choice. Plus, all remote Recursers are welcome to visit the Hub any time during their batch (and any time after). We recommend visiting in the first few weeks of your batch if you can, so that you can meet your batchmates early. (And if there's a batch you'd be able to visit for, pick that one!)

Please email us at admissions@recurse.com if you have further questions about attending Virtual RC!