HYDERABAD: Coronavirus has disrupted the lives of people all over the world causing a slowdown. These unprecedented times have a trail of uncertainty for students about their careers, studies, and future. “The pandemic has impacted us, final year students, in more ways than one,” said Maria Anisha Cross, a final year computer science engineering student from Hyderabad’s Guru Nanak University. She added that those who were supposed to work on their capstone project this semester had to leave it mid-way.
Maria said, “Students like myself, who were planning to do their masters abroad, are now left with so many things to consider before taking a major decision on whether it is the right time to go or not. Even if we choose to stay back, it is really hard to get a job since most companies have stopped hiring.” “The intake for the new academic year at universities abroad will only begin next year causing a delay in our studies. Also, the first semester classes will be conducted online and students will have to stay back in the home country.
Therefore, we might end up applying in India,” said Allam Manoj Reddy, a final year Agricultural sciences student at Loyola Academy. George P Babu, resident of Hyderabad currently studying MSc Quantitative Finance at Pondicherry University said, “The lockdown has extended the current academic calendar at least by four months and the exams for the current year have been postponed indefinitely.” George, who was supposed to begin his summer internship, told the Hyderabad Express, “All internships that are being offered are work from home opportunities.
These internships don’t match up with on-site work experience. Also, many are finding it difficult even to secure such internships online.” Many colleges are figuring out ways to conduct examinations online through various technical expertise but again there are quite some hindrances to such methods. To this George added, “For theory, numerical and practical exams the online method might not viable. However, if the mode is changed to an MCQ-based pattern, it might be viable. But there is always a worry about technical issues disrupting online exams.
A final year student in BA Psychology, Journalism and English Literature from Loyola Academy, Shubha Pai said, “Most of the colleges don’t seem to have the resources for online examinations and the students feel like it’s more of a vacation than a lockdown.” Internships are not just about marks, but also about the experience one gains from these opportunities and now it all seems like we are devoid of that knowledge, she added. On a lighter note Shubha mentioned that she hopes that the memes on virtual graduation do not come true. Many of the courses seem to share similar issues, but the medical students face a lot of other problems and have no choice but to wait till the colleges open.
Final year MBBS student Bharath Kumar Kodamagundla from MNR College, Hyderabad said, “The lockdown has an immense impact on MBBS students. Online exams and evaluations are practically impossible for us. We can’t examine a patient’s pulse or blood pressure online and without clinical exams. None of us will get a degree.” With the delayed academic year that will follow, MBBS final year students may not be able to finish internships by March 2022, he added. Bharath said, “The final year students will not be able to complete NEET PG counselling after writing the exam in January 2022 because they won’t be eligible for the allotment of a PG seat without a one-year internship certificate.
Bharath said, “The pandemic would have a huge impact on the placement opportunities in good hospitals because of the loss of clinical classes that help us acquire practical knowledge in the medical field.” Students who procured jobs before the lockdown are also facing issues about joining their company, but on a positive note, final year BTech student from CVR College of Engineering Robin Wilson said, “My exams were scheduled in the second week of April and joining at Accenture Technology as per the offer letter was supposed to be in the last week of April.
But now everything has been postponed due to Covid-19.” However, Accenture is staying connected with them through emails and webinars. They have made attempts to try virtual onboarding but several technical difficulties have made it impossible, he added. For students who look forward to their future careers and studies, life has become unpredictable.