HYDERABAD: Foreign students in Osmania University rue lack of support of the institution on academic issues. As a result, many students are unable to complete their course without any backlog. In some departments of the university, especially in science and engineering colleges, there are many instances of foreign students even dropping out.
The university foreign relations office (UFRO) regularly updates the details of foreign students with the Foreign Relations Regional Office (FRRO) in Hyderabad. However, FRRO maintained that many foreign students, who hail from troubled countries, fail deliberately in university exams so that they have some reason to stay back.
As many as 14 foreign nationals were detained by police on Wednesday for overstaying after their visa expiry. They were all found to have entered the country on a student-visa.
Speaking to these foreign students revealed that some common problems that most of them face in OU. However, none of them wanted to be named for the fear of being singled out in university. There are as many as 3,700 foreign students in OU.
No support from faculty?
A foreign student from an engineering college said, “Some of the subjects in first year are new to us whereas Indian students would have already studied them or have a basic idea about it. Many teachers do not clear our doubts and some even ignore us completely.
As a result, most of the foreign engineering students have backlogs in the very first year which demoralises them and forces them to drop out.
Same is not the case in private engineering colleges like Chaitanya Bharathi Institute of Technology (CBIT) or in government college like National Institute of Technology (NIT) Warangal where my friends study. There they find faculty very welcoming and as a result very few have backlogs.”
‘Demotivation a factor’
Most of the foreign students said they find classes in OU ‘demotivating’. A student from an African nation studying in the law college said, “Most of the times, the attendance of Indian students in classes is as low as six to ten students.
As a result, sometimes the teachers also do not take much interest in teaching. Classes are dull and not interactive. When we joined the university we had great expectations.”
Voice issues clearly: Admin
Prof P Lakshminarayana, Dean of students affairs, said, “We are ready to help in whichever way possible. The foreign students should bring to us clearly which are the areas or subjects they need help and not hesitate in sharing their problems.
We will be conducting english classes for foreign students before beginning their course and are planning to start remedial classes in mathematics and physics if enough of them are interested.”
Reach out to us: students
A foreign student from Arts College said, “The university should device a way for us to reach out to them. Students hesitate to go alone and speak of issues for the fear of being singled out.
Like the office of UFRO for administrative work, there should be an office which we can reach for our academic woes. There should be regular interactions by principals of colleges to understand our woes.”