Life is like a waiting room for many Saudi students abroad

The coronavirus has placed students everywhere under pressure to navigate the outbreak, including Saudi scholars facing uncertain times while thousands of miles from home.
Universities have digitalized lectures, exams and graduations, encouraging students to use Zoom meetings, Microsoft Teams and other platforms to collaborate on group projects and study together.
Alhanouf Fahad, a Saudi law student in Oregon, the US, said that attending online classes had advantages and disadvantages. “Online courses under quarantine saved me time in using transportation. It is more convenient and offers flexibility to choose the suitable time for me to take a test,” she said. “Other than certain due dates, I make my own schedule for completing the requirements of the course.”
Perhaps the greatest foe of online courses was procrastination and not being able to visit the university library. Another drawback, she said, was that “my grades have been affected since the outbreak, because of little or no interaction between students and lecturers. I also need to have time management and self-discipline skills to stay on top of my coursework.”
Though schools might continue their virtual classes online, it seems that the days are often not adequately filled to keep students occupied. Many simply have too much free time, and as social distancing measures are adhered to it is difficult for them not to treat their time as like being in a waiting room.
Illustrating the typical daily routine of students studying abroad, Alhanouf said: “My days have blurred into Google Classroom assignments, hobbies such as learning to draw and knit, aimless binge-watching on Netflix, and FaceTiming my family to pass the time.”
Laila Fahad, Alhanouf’s sister, was visiting her on Jan. 1 when the coronavirus outbreak began and she was supposed to go back to Saudi Arabia by the end of March, but “she is stuck with us now,” Alhanouf said.
Students are balancing the anxiety caused by the coronavirus outbreak in the cities that they live in with completing school requirements.

Aseel Al-Harbi, a Saudi medical student completing a master’s degree at Leeds University in the UK, said that the university quickly took strong measures, such as suspending classes, closing libraries and offering an efficient system of online lectures.
“I used to spend most of my time on campus between classes and the library; being at home is a real motivation-killer. However, I also know that this whole situation is new to everyone, and we’re all in this together,” she said.
Al-Harbi said: “My colleagues have celebrated their unique graduation ceremony via Snapshat and Skype due to social distancing.” But as she looks forward to her graduation she is wondering if she will be able to walk up to the podium to receive her degree after years of hard work.
Al-Harbi is juggling a number of courses. Her once overscheduled life has ground to a halt and, while jarring, she thinks the break might be a good thing to protect her as coronavirus cases continue to be reported and the authorities are recommending that everyone stay safe.
“Every aspect of my daily routine has changed. Even though it hasn’t been easy, we should be strong, stay positive and follow quarantine rules,” she said.
As of late 2019, the Saudi Ministry of Education said that there were more than 90,000 students studying abroad. The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has completed a number of repatriation flights, returning Saudi citizens — students included — who wish to return to the Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia suspended all international flights to and from the Kingdom on March 15 to curb the spread of the coronavirus.