International students feel financial pain in lockdown
Despite changes to employment rules for international students allowing for more “flexibility,” Shloka Shah is barely scraping by.
The first-year masters of human resources student, who is studying at the University of Windsor, lives with eight roommates — her mother and seven other international students from India.
Her mother had been visiting from India for three months when travel restrictions were implemented because of COVID-19, leaving her trapped and forced to live in Shah’s house.
Now Shah worries about her mother’s health.
“I have to take care of my mom, because if I catch the virus, she’s at high risk,” Shah said.
Shah is among the hundreds of international students in Windsor and across Southwestern Ontario who are struggling to survive and unable to go home because of the coronavirus. Many have turned to food banks and other charities to cope.
The $9-billion COVID-19 benefits package for students, announced April 22, provides $1,250 a month to domestic students — up to $1,750 a month for students with dependents or those who have a disability — but nothing for international students.
Most, like Shah, are also not eligible for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, with its $5,000 annual earning cutoff.
Shah can take about $600 a month from her guaranteed income certificate (GIC) account — money international students have to deposit to prove they can afford tuition fees in Canada.
The federal government recently announced changes to employment rules for international students, allowing students to work full time if their job is essential. Previously they were restricted to working 20 hours a week off-campus.
“We have essentially allowed those students in those sectors to create more flexibility to work more, by lifting some restrictions around hours,” immigration minister Marco Mendicino said in an interview with the Windsor Star.
A couple of Shah’s roommates have found jobs at grocery stores, but Shah said she doesn’t plan to do that.
“It’s very risky out there to go and get a job at Walmart,” she said.
This leaves Shah scraping by, using the money set aside in her GIC to pay for food and rent.
Shah’s mother wants to return to India, but flights are suspended.
When airlines return to full operation, Shah worries she won’t have enough money to afford a ticket for her mother.
Shah’s mother was only on a 90day visitor’s permit.
In response to a growing number of concerns, the federal government has given itself the “discretion to extend” expiring visas for those international students or other people who can’t leave Canada.
“My department has been working around the clock to ensure that we can accommodate some of the requests that have come to us,” Mendicino said.
In the meantime, Shah is finding it difficult to physically distance while living with eight roommates. She says it’s a constant struggle to keep the one kitchen, two bathrooms and food coming into the house clean.
“We are facing a problem all year because there are so many people, and they’re going out for work and we don’t know what safety measures they’re taking,” Shah said.
The house has strict rules. Everyone must shower and sanitize before they bring anything into the house. After a grocery run, that means sitting out on the deck with Lysol and wiping down every product before it can be brought inside.
Shah and a couple of her roommates were laid off from their jobs, cutting down on the risks, at least until the recent changes to employment rules.
Now Shah is stuck in the house, trying to keep herself and her mother safe.
Twenty-one per cent of the University of Windsor’s 16,000 students are international. The university is now developing a survey to find out the exact number of students still in Canada and struggling, according to Beth Oakley, director of the International Student Centre at the University of Windsor.
St Clair College had 4,200 international students between its Windsor and Chatham campuses in the winter semester.
Ronald Seguin, vice-president of international relations at St. Clair, said the college has “ramped up” its food bank programs, delivering supplies to around 65 students last week.
Nishalini Neru, a third-year University of Windsor student, noticed some of her international student friends were struggling. So she set up a food drive, along with her mother, Kisha, to provide them with essentials.
The pair raised $2,500 to distribute food to 100 students, but the money ran out after providing one month of food packages.
Kisha said they have since had nearly 30 more students asking for help, whom she refers to local food banks.
“But they still need some international groceries,” Kisha said. “They might be able to get bread and eggs, but not Indian spices, or rice or whatever.”
With demand so high, Nishalini said it may be two or three weeks before they can fundraise enough to go purchase more food.
“Our plan is to continue until the pandemic is over, and we’ll keep collecting,” Nishalini said.
Universities and colleges are also creating programs to fill gaps in benefits which leave out international students.
Western University created a student relief fund, largely funded by alumni and the school.
While the federal student benefit only supports domestic students, it frees up some extra money to send toward international students, according to Jim Weese, vice-provost of international students at Western.
Some priority students have already received $1,000 and can apply for further funding.
“There are lots of programs in place to help our domestic students, and we want to make sure international students are also assisted to the best of our ability,” Weese said.
St. Clair has a similar program, as does the International Student Centre at the university.
“Depending on the circumstance of the student, the bursary is enough to help with some food or a month of rent, it’s a few hundred dollars,” Oakley said about the university program. “We’re not advertising it, because the funds are limited, so we’re helping students who email us.”
Another big concern for Shah is paying tuition fees. She returns to school May 19, straining the remaining funds in her GIC. International students’ tuition rates are five times higher than the average domestic student.
A year’s tuition costs $14,000 to $17,000 at Windsor, between $31,000 and $38,000 at Western, and St. Clair fees range from $12,000 to $29,000 a year.
Shah and other students wrote the university, requesting lower fees.
Shah will have to use the remaining money in her GIC, which she expects will run out in August, and then figure it out from there.
“When COVID started and everything was shutting down, I was totally depressed,” she said.
“People are burdened with depression, asking, ‘How are we going to survive?’ because it’s not our normal life.”
Despite health concerns, she feels lucky having her mother here to help deal with isolation.
“Right now, we are feeling like it’s getting back on track,” she added. “Cases are reduced.
“We’re getting used to it now.”