Immigrant Students : The struggles and Challenges | Things you need to be cautious| Struggles and precautions

Written by Lakshmi Menon | Article is from BeTales Aug 24 issue

“Beyond, Beds and Boundaries”, an Indian Student Mobility Report marks that over 1 million Indian students are students in foreign countries as of 2023 and they are estimating an increase in the number to 2 million by 2025. 

The students flocking to the foreign countries with their bags full of dreams are not exactly living their best lives in the alien city. The recent feedback and news that are gaining the attention of the masses is the struggles that these young immigrant students are facing. Many young students are not able to find accommodation at a rate that they can afford and are struggling to find a part time job to their daily needs. 

Be Careful of :

• The Masked Agencies

• Roof Over the Head

• Not So Easy Part-Times 

• Good Old Racism

The Masked Agencies 

The struggles are starting from their home country itselves. The agencies are popping up like mushrooms in a thunder everywhere. The study abroad agencies are one the most exponentially growing industries and there are a large number of such agencies that want to loot your money rather than giving you a good placement in a dream country. The cases of fake agencies laundering money from the students and getting away is not a rare incident now. Any aspirant needs to take extra measures to make sure your agent is not a fraud and they are taking you seriously as an immigrant student. Also, make sure the agency you are giving money to gives you full details of the course you are going to study, because there are many difficult courses where there would not be many entries and these agents might enroll you to get easy admission. You would not be able to change your course for a whole semester and you will be stuck with a course that nobody has ever cleared. 

Roof Over the Head 

Recently, in Canadore College in North Bay, Ontario, around 30 Indian students were homeless when the college authorities only provided them accommodation for two days. According to the words of a local Indian Journalist, Gaurav Bhatt, to India Today, the students were asking strangers for a place to stay. “Indian students who have recently landed in Canada are going around residential neighbourhoods in Ontario’s Kitchener, lugging their bags, pressing doorbells to know if there is any space available to be rented out,” 

They are forced to share a basement of some house with five to six people for 500$-700 $. And, their groceries and phone bill and daily expenses come apart from this. Finding a reasonably priced accommodation and suitable roommates have become a herculean task for the students apart from finding the money for their rent. It is also said that students who are not able to get a suitable place to stay are forced to live in a car and others are staying in expensive motels as they are not given any other options. 

Not So Easy Part-Times 

Apart from the accommodation, most of the students migrating to the foreign country would be planning to land a part-time job to sustain in the country and for their expenses. Apparently, this dream of a part-time job has actually become a nightmare. The students are struggling to get even mini jobs unlike the promises by the agencies while boarding the flight. Due to the surge in the number of people migrating from different parts of the world to countries like Canada, UK and Germany, made the part time opportunities very difficult. Many recruiting agencies are naturally not preferring the students now. Even the students who are able to land a job are struggling to juggle between their academics and studies. 

Good Old Racism

Even in the 21st century, the mind of the people towards different skin colors has not diminished. Racism has always been one of the most problematic issues that people with coloured skin had to face since long back. It has not subdued even in today’s era too. There are students facing bullying and discrimination because of their nationality, accent and the food they bring. This is not something we can find a solution to in some days, is’nt it?

It is also predicted that there will be restrictions imposed on the number of student visas that would be given to countries like India in the coming years. The lives of immigrant students are not easy as we grasp from their Instagram timeline. Most of them would not have taken this leap of faith if they knew what was awaiting them. We are not scaring you to go abroad to pursue your dreams, but merely giving you a reality check on the scenarios that might be in front of you once you reach there. If you are prepared to face any such adverse scenario, it would be easy to make it through the difficulties. 

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