NOVI SAD, Serbia -- Serbian universities are hoping to reopen their doors in September following months of student boycotts, but Jelena Stankovic is adamant: "I will not return to my studies."
Stankovic is a student at the Academy of Arts in Novi Sad, the city in northern Serbia that is the epicenter of the biggest wave of nationwide anti-government protests in nearly 30 years.
It was here, back in November, that a railway station roof collapsed and killed 16 people. Ever since, students have been leading protests calling for accountability.
"The fight must continue," Stankovic told RFE/RL's Balkan Service, while preparing an exhibition on the campus organized by students who are blockading it.
She's part of a generation who sacrificed a year of their studies and are now weighing whether to continue the boycott -- or return to class. Stankovic insists it has not been a lost year.
"I have met incredible people, both students and professors, with whom I expect to stay in touch even after all this is over," she said.
"For me, the most beautiful realization in life is that I can do something else, not just play the piano. That I can think for myself and have other skills in life."
In Belgrade, Konstantin Cvetanovic shared photos of student protests at the Physics Faculty, with the word "Blockade" chalked on a blackboard. He agreed that the past year has given him a different kind of education.
"Even though we have a shortened academic year, what we have learned about professional integrity during this blockade will be worth much more than the knowledge we may lose," he said.
However, he also said it might now be time to go back to school, adding that the protests can still continue.
"To be in a situation for months where only the universities are not operating simply makes no sense, and we would only give the authorities motivation to shut down the university, which would in turn reduce the chances for any future uprising," he adds.
Some schools took the unusual step of trying to reopen in June, before the summer break. Among them was the Higher Technical School in Subotica, in northern Serbia, where Nenad Gojkovic is enrolled.
Gojkovic said he doesn't want to study but noted that many students have already gone back.
"I know that many colleagues have already sacrificed a lot, both financially and in terms of time. Many have found jobs to cover expenses. Some are not supported by their parents and manage on their own. Many have lost their scholarships," he said.
Stankovic was prepared for the same issue in Novi Sad.
"I cannot say that I will feel any resentment toward colleagues who, for objective reasons, cannot continue the struggle as passionately as at the beginning," she said.
Belgrade and Novi Sad are the largest universities in Serbia. Data they provided appeared to suggest classes would soon resume.
Novi Sad University has opened over 9,500 places for new students for the upcoming academic year. In the first "round," more than 5,300 students enrolled, with the next round in September.
The University of Belgrade announced that in the first enrollment 10,984 students were admitted -- 538 fewer than last year.
