Corona virus effect on international students

[zomhud]

Travel bans are being imposed and consulates are being closed down in many countries. So, what's going to happen to international students? Are their admission and/or funding going to be cancelled if things don't get better? What can happen in worst case scenario? I am very anxious about the situation. 

[history110]

I can't help but wonder slightly too. I live in WA state, which the epicenter of US outbreak and am also seriously considering Canadian school offers. They are just across the border in BC and I highly doubt they will close the US-Canadian border, but you just never know. My thoughts are with those students that in countries that have a travel ban imposed on them - this must be all very nerve wracking.

[cropop]

The school itself isn't likely to do anything negative but they might decide to defer international admits until a later semester or something. It will be up to individual schools on how they will handle it depending on how long the crisis lasts. Some schools have already mentioned what they'll do and some haven't.

However, one could expect that visa applications might not be approved or be delayed if things continue. Many foreign nationals are currently barred from entering the US (Europe, China, Iran, etc.). I'd expect that if this happened, the school would work with you to find an accommodation.

[zomhud]

7 hours ago, cropop said:

Some schools have already mentioned what they'll do and some haven't.

Which schools have mentioned about their future plans? Can you please share some?

[SaltyNuts]

On 3/14/2020 at 3:27 PM, zomhud said:

Travel bans are being imposed and consulates are being closed down in many countries. So, what's going to happen to international students? Are their admission and/or funding going to be cancelled if things don't get better? What can happen in worst case scenario? I am very anxious about the situation. 

As an international applicant, this is making me quite nervous as well. I would be taking a significant portion of my family savings to finance my MS education, so if my program were to abruptly "shift online" in the middle, I would feel as though I had squandered all my parent's hard earned money on education that I could otherwise acquire via Coursera for a fraction of the cost. Moreover, new travel restrictions are also being imposed everyday, which makes me wonder how all the students admitted to the Fall'20 session will even arrive on campus and be physically present to attend classes. 

Anyway, it just seems strange for my offer letter to not even mention the Coronavirus at all. I wish we had more time to accept/reject our offers because one month is not going to be an adequate timeframe to judge the severity of the situation. 

I guess,we can all just be hopeful and try to remain positive here. Maybe the virus will be dealt with by September and we're overthinking it?

[NotaBene]

3 hours ago, SaltyNuts said:

As an international applicant, this is making me quite nervous as well. I would be taking a significant portion of my family savings to finance my MS education, so if my program were to abruptly "shift online" in the middle, I would feel as though I had squandered all my parent's hard earned money on education that I could otherwise acquire via Coursera for a fraction of the cost. Moreover, new travel restrictions are also being imposed everyday, which makes me wonder how all the students admitted to the Fall'20 session will even arrive on campus and be physically present to attend classes. 

Anyway, it just seems strange for my offer letter to not even mention the Coronavirus at all. I wish we had more time to accept/reject our offers because one month is not going to be an adequate timeframe to judge the severity of the situation. 

I guess,we can all just be hopeful and try to remain positive here. Maybe the virus will be dealt with by September and we're overthinking it?

This must be so stressful for international students. I am domestic and am also wondering what will happen -- whether anyone will actually be able to start in September. It is impossible to say now, but I just want to offer re: switching online that it would be completely understandable and fair to ask for a deferment or, if impossible, to back out if this happens, given the extenuating circumatances. After all, it is fair to expect what you were promised when you accepted, even if it's not the school's fault that a pandemic erupted.

Edited March 15, 2020 by NotaBene

[zomhud]

18 hours ago, SaltyNuts said:

As an international applicant, this is making me quite nervous as well. I would be taking a significant portion of my family savings to finance my MS education, so if my program were to abruptly "shift online" in the middle, I would feel as though I had squandered all my parent's hard earned money on education that I could otherwise acquire via Coursera for a fraction of the cost. Moreover, new travel restrictions are also being imposed everyday, which makes me wonder how all the students admitted to the Fall'20 session will even arrive on campus and be physically present to attend classes. 

Anyway, it just seems strange for my offer letter to not even mention the Coronavirus at all. I wish we had more time to accept/reject our offers because one month is not going to be an adequate timeframe to judge the severity of the situation. 

I guess,we can all just be hopeful and try to remain positive here. Maybe the virus will be dealt with by September and we're overthinking it?

Almost similar situation here. What makes difficult for me is, I have very difficult career options if I cannot start my graduate studies this fall. The socio-economic system of my country is not much helpful for academic career unless you have a foreign PhD. I have invested couple of years from my life and I will find difficult to find any other job here. This can be the biggest turning point of my life.        

[noodlesoup]

I just heard that one of my schools is offering students the option to defer by one semester i.e. start Spring 2021. Obviously this would involve a lot of administrative changes for schools, but personally is a great option. Wondering if you guys are hearing this too?

[AnnaGG]

I am a current international graduate student, so even though I'm in a different situation, I understand your concerns. However, I would like to offer a more optimistic perspective. The new academic year will start on sooner than in five months. No one knows how the virus will develop till then, but even if things do not get better, I don't think a travel ban can be sustained for so long. By that time I am positive there will be better coping mechanisms in place. I really doubt that come September travel bans will make sense anymore. It is natural to worry about something as momentous as grad school in these difficult times, but there is still light ahead!