The emergence of COVID-19 has definitely replaced all lifestyles and derailed millions of plans. Among the necessary adjustments was the disruption of examination systems and other non-essential foreign travel.
“In short, the COVID-19 pandemic has definitely affected overseas travel, not just for MSU,” Elke Schmidt, global health, safety and security coordinator, said in an email. Let’s go back to school programming abroad, as we have slowly increased over the last year. “
The university administration has added a quarantine policy to MSU’s overseas travel health insurance for more SSM travelers, adding education students abroad.
“We have also worked with our partners to make sure we have contingency plans in place if a student or university member contracts COVID-19 and wishes to be quarantined,” Schmidt said. “These types of plans are beneficial, not only when it comes to COVID-19, but also having plans put in place anytime a student can fully participate in programming. “
Dina Kaur, head of journalism and public relations and editor-in-chief of The State News, said luck was on her side when she applied for her degree program at John Cabot University in Rome.
“When COVID came along, I worried a lot about not being able to live my dream of reading abroad,” Kaur said.
After applying in the fall of last year, Kaur tried to avoid canceling exam programs.
Photo courtesy of Dina Kaur.
“It’s like cautious optimism,” he said.
Kaur’s fate in Rome, Italy, was greatly affected at the beginning of the pandemic, resulting in very strict protocols for visiting students. The KN95 is the only suitable mask to wear in Rome.
“Also, when I first went there, you had to wear a mask outside,” Kaur revealed. “In Italy, to get into restaurants and bars or anywhere you wanted to go, you needed your COVID vaccination card. “
Kaur said Italy has an exclusive formula called “Green Pass” that allows other vaccinated people living in the European Union to have their evidence of vaccination in the form of QR codes on their phones, allowing for simple scanning in tight spaces. Non-EU citizens Be in possession of a vaccination card against COVID-19 or similar.
“You can only eat out if you don’t have one,” Kaur said.
Traveling to other EU countries required a COVID-19 check every time he left the country and returned until February, when that mandate was lifted, about half the semester for Kaur.
“Italy, in general, had stricter regulations than the maximum of other countries,” Kaur said. I still had it until last month when I was there. They had it until early May, that I still had to wear an inner mask and so on.
As for vaccination status, academics had to receive all 3 vaccinations (two normal sets and one booster) before arriving in their host country.
“I feel like I had an amazing time and I don’t regret anything because I don’t think the restrictions have hindered my ability to have fun,” Kaur said.
Raenu Charles, a journalism graduate and state journalist, spent a week in Kenya in May.
Charles said that prior to the trip, the organization held non-mandatory meetings to allow participants to be more informed about the program and vaccination needs, as many had never left the country before.
“We had to get vaccinated against yellow fever and I got one of the meningitis vaccines,” Charles said. “We had to take malaria pills every day while we were there as well. “
Charles also had to go through COVID-19 before returning to the United States.
“There’s this thing called Global Haven, and you’d record your vaccines on it, and then you’d print evidence to show the Kenyan TSA to other people when they handed you over there so you were vaccinated,” he said. “On the way back, we had to pass a COVID check in Nairobi to test negative before entering the United States. “
Unlike Kaur, Charles and the rest of his organization had to wear masks at the airport.
“It’s pretty much like the U. S. , where COVID is definitely still there, but other people mask up,” he said. “But there were symptoms everywhere that reminded other people to wash their hands. There is an initiative that the Kenyan government has taken to identify handwashing stations throughout the city. These are pretty much a bunch of sinks and soaps where you can also wash your hands and everything.
As someone with a lot of medical anxiety, Charles was worried about all the vaccines and pills he would have to take. However, he said the procedure went well.
“I think I was able to laugh more in Kenya because I followed those precautions. I didn’t worry about malaria, yellow fever or meningitis or obviously COVID as well, because I got vaccinated.
Journalism and virtual storytelling Rahmya Trewern, photographer for The State News, also visited Kenya from 15 to 31 May. She said that while she was nervous about reactions to vaccines, she knew it was all she had to do to be safe abroad.
“The only thing that bothered me is not having the typhoid (vaccine),” he said. “They’re a little hard to come by, just because rabies is an expensive vaccine. “
Not all vaccines required through Trewern were in the same place. Trewern said the MSU clinic advised him to get vaccinated at other clinics to save money because the MSU clinic doesn’t have insurance.
However, he said it was the most problematic component of his experience.
“My favorite component of being was all photographers,” Trewern said, referring to Esther Sweeney, a fashion photographer who takes bright, exclusive photos. “And I was able to feed the giraffes, so it was great. “
As the pandemic evolves, examine systems that work with ambitions for good fortune and security, making up for lost time.
“I feel like the restrictions have helped in some way,” Kaur said. “They were there to protect us, and I appreciate having them. The country is doing what it thinks is right for them. “