COVID-19 and USA Schools: What they are saying

• NC State will begin its 2020-21 academic year on August 10, nine days earlier than originally scheduled, and will forgo fall break in order to complete the semester before Thanksgiving, including finals.
• Winter commencement plans will be announced at a later date.
• If you enroll online for Fall 2020 from abroad, or first enroll in on-campus courses in Spring 2021, you would not be eligible for CPT until Spring 2022.Please note that beginning your program on-line may impact your future ability to apply for CPT/OPT, if you become an on-campus student after your first semester on-line.
• You can Defer your admission start term to Spring 2021 or Fall 2021 (applications can be deferred up to one year from the original admit term).
• Students will be able to take a full course load (9 hours) online in Fall 2020. After passing international clearance, an I-20 or DS-2019 would be issued for on-campus attendance in Spring 2021.
• Certain graduate professional programs carry a tuition increment or “premium” in addition to the regular graduate tuition. This increased tuition charge is used to maintain or enhance the excellence of the program while assuring access to them.

• The Fall semester online will not count towards the Curricular Practical Training (CPT) requirement of two semesters. However, if you begin your program online, you will be eligible for both CPT and OPT after completing two semesters of on campus study
• RIT has extended the graduate deposit deadline from May 1 to May 15 to alleviate pressure on students and families. We have many programs that have limited capacity and wait lists, and will begin going to the wait lists after May 15, so be sure to pay the $500 deposit by May 15 to reserve your place in the program and your merit scholarship..
• The tuition deposit is refundable only if you apply for and are denied a visa. In this case, you will need to show proof of that denial.
• Any student who completes the Fall semester online and is not able to come to campus in Spring 2021 will be able to continue their masters degree program on campus in the next available term. University will work with you to develop an individual plan of study once you complete the Fall online semester.
• Due to program demand we are not entertaining requests for deferrals at this time.
• RIT has a long history of online education, and we currently offer more than 30 degree programs online – most of which are graduate programs. Many on-campus students elect to take online courses while they are studying on campus.

• Cornell remains open and all classes have moved to online instruction.
• Cornell anticipates to be operational in the fall, with teaching and research activities occurring on campus, and online in certain circumstances. Plan to welcome fall 2020 admits to campus in August.
• Given the fluidity of travel restrictions and consular closings, obtaining a visa or travelling to the US might not be possible for all fall entrants. Contact your academic program to discuss deferral options; some programs may have online options available.
• If you’re an Active student (Active SEVIS record, continuing or transfer student), for the duration of the COVID-19 emergency the semester of online learning will apply to your work authorization eligibility. You can spend this semester inside or outside the U.S. If your program starts online and transitions to in-person mid-semester, this semester will count towards the one-year eligibility provided that late in-person arrival is acceptable for your academic program.
• If you’re an incoming student (no Active SEVIS record) an online semester spent entirely abroad will not count towards OPT/CPT eligibility.
• If Cornell provides online instruction for the fall, we cannot guarantee at this time that all forms of Cornell funding for international graduate students engaging in online study will continue to be available. We are currently issuing I-20 and DS-2019 forms as usual.

• Planning to offer several remote learning options for those who cannot join us on campus in September
• Remote options will also be available through the Spring and Summer 2021 terms to help meet social distancing requirements within classrooms, such as alternating in-person and online attendance in large lectures.
• The Fall 2020 semester may or may not count towards the full-time status for one academic year (two consecutive semesters) in the F-1 visa / OPT requirement, depending on your date of arrival. However, the Spring and Summer 2021 semesters completed in person would count towards this requirement and students will be able to apply for /CPT/OPT at the end of Summer 2021.

• While the university has every intention of resuming face-to-face instruction in the fall, should conditions prevent from doing so, the university will have contingency plans in place to transition more courses to remote instruction in order to allow students to maintain their academic progress.
• Tuition and fees for the upcoming academic year have not yet been approved by the Board of Trustees.
• After Thanksgiving, all classes and final exams will be delivered in a quality online format.

The vice chancellors and presidents of popular universities in the US have tried to reach out to current and prospective students along with the committee members, assuring them to stay safe, not to panic and fight this crisis together.

They have all advocated for social distancing and extended their helping hands to people in need. As of April 2020, here are some updates from vice chancellors of different universities on the current situation caused by Covid-19.