Covid- A blessing in disguise for foreign college aspirants?

For Indians, receiving Higher Education abroad has always been a big deal. It is not an everyday phenomenon that a son or a daughter from typical Indian households boards a flight for the US, UK, Russia, or any other country for acquiring a degree. It, therefore, is an extraordinarily unique experience.

However, when Covid struck, and while everybody remained entangled in health concerns, the recurrent lockdowns ensured that many families found themselves worried about their ward’s future and their education abroad. Most students discovered themselves in distress while attempting to attain their dream schools overseas.

Covid undoubtedly impaired almost all processes across the globe. The entire ecosystem of foreign education had come to a standstill for quite some while. The complete landscape went haywire with constant changes in travel restrictions, modifications in visa rules, routine delay of eligibility exams, fear of contracting covid and so on.

However, statistics still show that the scale nevertheless tips towards the institutes abroad.

In a survey by iSchoolConnect, as low as 14.5% of students expressed that they would be withholding their dreams of studying abroad. (source: India Today) People, therefore, continue to remain passionate more than ever in pursuing education in internationally acclaimed universities. And why should they not?

After all, quality education is what drives our lives toward a crazy yet secure destination. We frequently end up committing errors by assuming that education is mere rote learning of concepts. Instead, it is more about the holistic development of an individual that makes it powerful enough to handle the atrocities of the world. Fair enough to say that we all want to live a well-structured and hopeful life where we can protect ourselves and our family’s interests to an extent where we no longer feel the need to compromise with our choices.

Now another question that must have popped into your mind, what the students should do? Should they settle for the bare minimum by limiting themselves because of the pandemic? Well, the answer is unquestionably a big NO! Why console for less when you are worthy of a world-class education? No, that is no longer a joke or a dream, as many might consider it to be. Covid has yet not been able to restrict the ambitions of young minds. Additionally, there are n number of factors that can help you get close to the kind of education that holds the power to change your perspective towards the world.  

Universities in tier 1 countries give various opportunities for students to flourish, ranging from scholarships to post-degree work visas. Furthermore, gone are the days when only privileged folks could afford to settle abroad. Now every deserving candidate could fulfil their wish of being in a different land. A steady rise in financial aids, including exceptionally friendly student loans along with a plethora of generous scholarships, make sure that finances do not get to limit a child’s dreams.

Now, believe it or not, Covid ironically has become another prominent factor that has boosted one’s confidence in prospects of future abroad. Well, it is no secret that covid has brought countries to their knees. Now, international students and tourists are perhaps the principal components of the economy in most countries boasting of premier educational institutes. And those problems have invited students to various countries, not just to live a fruitful life but also to support the rebuilding of these struggling economies. A lot of incentives, too, are up for grabs. If we study the graphs and metrics carefully, we will realise that being in a distant land for education during covid can be a boon if done under professional guidance.

During covid, most countries lost revenue generated from overseas admissions. The online classes sure have secured the elimination of the students’ consumer spending. A lot of students have decided to defer their colleges by a year or so instead of cancelling. Many did choose to attend further education in their home countries. The above-listed phenomena have compelled universities to adjust their admission procedures and requirements. Several of them have waived off their prerequisites for tests like GMAT, GRE, IELTS, TOEFL, and even SAT. Many have also proposed course application fee waivers.

Students do prefer classroom education, and multiple surveys have confirmed the same. Universities are working out ways to bring everybody on campus safely. Hybrid learning models are being readily adopted. It implies that certain course elements will be taught in the classrooms in offline mode while others will be kept online. These sorts of permutations and combinations will keep taking place. But what is evident is that Covid-19 has benefitted the foreign educations aspirants immensely, and there is no denial of this fact.