Indian students in the US struggling hard to achieve their dream amidst coronavirus
Several universities in the US moved classes online as cases of Covid-19 rose in many parts of the country, in March. These colleges also asked students to vacate campus housing, often on short notice, leaving them disoriented, distressed, and disappointed.
Many Indian students, who spoke to Quartz, said they had missed their chance to return home before India sealed its borders, and had struggled to find affordable housing in the US. Those who made it home in time are worried they may never get to go back because of visa technicalities.
Indians are the second-largest group of international students in the US after China. During the current academic year, there were an estimated 250,000 Indian students studying in the US.
Making a choice between staying back in the US or flying back home was particularly hard for international students in their senior years as this meant they were risking their career opportunities.
Several university departments servicing international students encouraged them to stay back in the US so they did not risk losing their optional practical training (OPT). Under the OPT, a student can stay back and work in the US for a year after completing their course, and also look for long-term employment. However, during the OPT period; a student cannot leave the country between applying for and receiving their employment authorization.
In the absence of campus networking events this year, and with coronavirus hitting the global economy badly, fresh graduates will find it hard to get placement. Even before the pandemic broke out, most of these students were aware that finding a job wouldn’t be a piece of cake with the Donald Trump administration’s hardline approach to immigrant workers.
Classes over video conferencing apps such as Zoom have become the new normal. But, they are far from the real experience. In addition, for students who are now spread across different countries, timing can be a serious problem. For instance, if classes run at the regular hours as on-campus, students in India will have to stay up through the nights to attend them.
Indian students also face an added challenge due to the country’s abysmal internet connectivity and speeds. India ranked 130th in the world for mobile speeds and 71st for fixed broadband speeds during March 2020.
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