HYDERABAD: For 22-year-old V Srikant, it has always been a dream to be able to go abroad for his studies. He did not even sit for placements as he wanted to complete his graduation and secure a seat for a Master’s degree abroad. However, now that he has got admission to George Mason University, Virginia, he is unsure whether he will even be able to go there before his classes start in August, 2021.
Like him, there are many other students planning to go abroad for further studies who are in the same boat. Even though the State government announced that the vaccination drive for students heading abroad will start from June 4, confusion still prevails amongst students over the prolonged gap between the first and second doses and the choice of vaccine.
Aravind Manduva, co-founder of i20fever, an education consultancy, says that many students have approached them with issues regarding the vaccination process. “While some foreign universities have made vaccination compulsory and have said that they will only recognise immunisations done using WHO-approved vaccines, major schools in UK, Canada and Australia have not given clear instructions. However, as of now, there are two vaccinations available in the State, Covishield and Covaxin, but only Covishield has been approved by the WHO. Another issue is that if students get Covishield, the gap between the two-dose is too long,” said Aravind.
Expressing resentment with the delayed inoculation drive, another youth who has secured admission in the University of Texas, Dallas, said, “If we don’t get vaccinated, the universities might not let us sit for classes. If we take the first dose of Covishield, the gap for the second docs is three months. How are we suppose to get the second dose in another country?”