International students at Boston University are hesitant to leave the city over Winter Intersession out of fears of being unable to return for the Spring semester. COURTESY OF DOMINIC WUNDERLICH VIA PIXABAY
From fears of losing their student visas over the summer to waking up in the middle of the night for classes halfway across the world, international students at Boston University have faced many challenges over the past few months.
With winter break on the horizon, international students who chose to be on campus this Fall are faced with yet another decision: remain in Boston for Winter Intersession or go home and face the possibility of being unable to return for Spring.
Students who are thinking of leaving the United States might want to reconsider, said Amanda Connolly, associate director for Student Services at the International Students and Scholars Office. In a Back2BU meeting, she said she urges international students to stay in the U.S. for winter break.
“We have seen things, since March, change very rapidly and very unexpectedly,” Connolly said. “Be really, really aware that if you leave, something could change while you’re gone such that you might not be able to come back when you want to.”
Connolly added embassies around the world have been closing, so visa processes are seeing delays, adding uncertainty and risks for international students traveling abroad.
Ariane Vigna, a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Communication, said she is planning to return home to France for break, but is “definitely nervous” about whether she will have a smooth return afterward.
“I know that if classes are solely online I might have issues coming in and justifying why I’m back in the U.S.,” Vigna said, “since immigration considers that studying is the only valid reason why you’re supposed to be there as someone on a student visa.”
Despite this, she said, the alternative — paying to “sit” at the Hotel Commonwealth in Boston for Winter Intersession — was never a viable option.
“It’s spending Christmas away from my family,” Vigna said. “Unthinkable.”
CAS junior Jessica Zheng said she recognizes the risks involved in going home to Canada. However, she said, international students’ worries of being unable to return to the U.S. predate COVID-19.
“Being an international student, it’s the constant fear that you’re going to get stopped at customs,” Zheng said. “It’s the constant fear that you’re not going to be able to come back.”
Zheng went home for Thanksgiving break and is currently in Canada.
She said her parents didn’t “see the point” of her going back to Boston for Fall semester, and will most likely have the same attitude about Spring. However, she is planning on returning in the new year.
“It’s hard to be around your family sometimes,” Zheng said, “especially when you’re in college and you’ve been through the freedom and the space to grow as your own person.”
Zheng said she feels while the University is doing its best to support international students at this time, it has not accomplished enough in this regard.
She said BU has opened various channels to communicate with international students, but ultimately feels that administrators are “extremely scared of students” and the possibility that they will be accosted by those disappointed in the University.
“You have to take some of the hits from people, because these are people’s lives,” Zheng said. “I feel like there’s just no communication.”
Zheng said the emails international students do receive — primarily from ISSO — are scarce and do not reflect the conversations international community members are having.
Albert Wu, a sophomore in CAS, echoed Zheng’s sentiments, calling BU’s support of international students “extremely subpar at best.”
Wu said he heard from other international students currently outside of Boston that some professors have not been understanding of varied time zones, and have mandated synchronous attendance.
“I know some kids who are doing [Learn from Anywhere] from Asia, and they have to go up on Zoom at like 2 a.m. local time,” Wu said. “That just goes against the whole concept of LfA. ”
Wu said he is currently unsure of his winter break plans. With his father working in Shanghai and his mother in Guangzhou, Wu said his options are to go home to Canada and stay with friends, or to spend the break alone in his off-campus Boston apartment.
He said he is leaning toward staying in Boston because fewer complications might arise.
“If I’m staying here, I don’t think there’s that much to worry about,” Wu said, “just that I get really bored.”
Essa Chawla, a junior in CAS, opted to return home to Pakistan shortly before Thanksgiving. Chawla said he does not foresee travel restrictions being a problem if he decides to return to Boston in Spring.
“I think the world has normalized that much that I feel like now it can’t go back to locking down,” Chawla said. “I’m not that concerned, but anything can happen.”
Part of the reason Chawla decided to go home, he said, is because he is planning to get an internship in the U.S. over the summer. Anticipating an inability to return to Pakistan for another year, he said he hoped to spend the Thanksgiving and winter breaks at home with family and friends.
All of Chawla’s classes have been online this semester, he said, and while he could have left in September when he realized how his semester would look, he opted to stay on campus for the college experience.
“I don’t think college is just about the classes and academics,” Chawla said. “It’s a whole experience. Even if all the classes are online … you still have a routine [on campus].”
Although COVID-19 cases continue to spike in Boston, Chawla said he feels safe at BU because of its “amazing” testing and contact tracing procedures.
Vigna said that despite any potential hurdles international students face this coming winter break, she is looking forward to going back home. From spending time with her family and friends to enjoying French food, she said worries about next semester should not infringe on the opportunity to take a break.
“Even though we might be stressed that we can’t come back, I think we should try and enjoy our time,” Vigna said. “Everyone deserves to rest right now.”
