Written by Mahdi Chowdhury
UTSC is a diverse campus, students come from different backgrounds and encounter different experiences. These become their story. "S" is one of the international students we interviewed, and she wishes to remain anonymous.
I sat with S on a beautiful spring afternoon, Friday, June 24th. Having had time to relax after her morning lecture, S remarked she was excited to share her experience at UTSC and to have her voice heard in addition to speaking on the impact of COVID-19 on international students. S pointed out that international students often feel they are treated differently. S lists the absurd tuition prices for feelings of alienation, “The tuition makes me feel different, domestic students pay so much less. The pricing is not reasonable.” Though support was available, S did not seek much support because of inaccessibility. Transportation was also an issue as S was unsuccessful in finding international student scholarships: “Most scholarships are only for domestic students with financial needs. The stereotype that international students do not need support because we are already wealthy is wrong and harmful”.
On a day as bright and beautiful as today, S spoke about how nice it was to be in Canada and would choose Canada again if given the choice. When asked about what convinced her to study in Canada rather than back home, S emphasized the political hemorrhage back home that prompted them to leave the country and not return for the summer. “It’s shitty there now, I don’t want to study there because of political reasons. People have lost their freedoms and rights and it’s only worsening. That’s why I spent the summer here.” S did not disclose their home country.
To conclude the brief interview, S spoke on the impact of COVID-19 on her mental health and if she felt like she missed out on her university experience as such; “Yes. First year was not what I imagined. Living in dorms, doing events, and hanging out with friends – none of this happened since it was all online,” remarks S, adding “I felt like I was studying on my own on an island.”