Are you wondering if you should defer your Fall 2020 admit because of Coronavirus? Read on. At the end of this post, we share a great decision making technique that you can use for yourself.
In our previous post, we discussed overall Covid impact on international students. We also saw 5 ways in which recruitment and job hunt will be affected.
Most of the schools including the mighty Harvard Business School has decided to allow its accepted applicants to defer their admits to next Fall. The other option is to accept the classes online. Some of the schools (eg UMass Amherst) have even offered the option to stretch the program to 4-5 semesters to ease the visa concerns.
Deferring to Fall/Spring 2021 – what does it mean?
Let’s look at the pros con of deferring your admission to next Spring or Fall
| To Spring | To next Fall |
|---|---|
| No CPT for Summer 2021 | Delay in graduation |
| Situation may not change – 6 months not long enough to try something | Uncertainty continues for another year |
Starting the classes online – what does it mean?
Many schools are giving the option to start the Fall classes online. Here are the pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Start on time | Impact on peer learning |
| No delay in graduation | Impact on networking |
| Possible uncertainty on CPT for Summer 2021 |
Some people may not want to wait much longer since they already have enough work experience. In that case, considering to start the Fall sem online is a way out. Of course, they must reflect on what it means for their jobhunt.
How is the economy looking and what does it mean for your jobhunt?
How is US market looking?
The recovery of US markets has been impressively fast and solid. While it took 1 year+ for DJI to bounce back during 2008 recession, it recovered 33% of its losses in 3 weeks. Even the magnitude of decline has been lower.
Why did US market recover so quickly?
Senate approved $2 Trillion Stimulus in record time. It is hailed as the largest-ever economic stimulus package in U.S. history, amounting to 10% of total U.S. gross domestic product. The bill was much larger than the $831 billion stimulus act passed in 2009 as part of the response to the Great Recession.
Bottomline is US government acted rapidly (enacted within ONE week) and decisively. The impact of the stimulus is that 150M people are getting money deposited in their bank accounts. There are further proposals to support the unemployed for at least 6 months.
How is Indian market looking?
While Indian markets are mirroring the US markets so far, there are many question marks on the fundamental strength and wellbeing of Indian industries.
Moody’s had earlier cut the forecast for India’s GDP growth this year to 0.2%. And very recently, Goldman Sachs slashed it down further to -5%. This foreshadows trouble in Indian economy.
What are the markets telling us worldwide?
The US govt is prepared to do whatever it takes and is looking decisive about keeping the economy afloat.
India and rest of the world is simply mirroring what’s going on in USA. So, if there’s recession in USA, expect a worse recession in India.
What is happening at H1B front and will you get work visas easily?
Trump can resort to stricter immigration steps to improve his re-election campaign. As pointed out in my previous article, Trump is against the IT outsourcing companies sending their folks on H1B and NOT against students like you.
In May, we had a team of Democrat and Republican Senators proposing a H1B Reform Act which is a great news for people studying in USA. Read our detailed commentary on the same and what it can mean for you.
How might US Presidential election complicate things?
- Trump means solid economy but tricky H1B visas
- Democrats victory means softer economy but better H1B visa
Should you defer your admit because of Coronavirus?
At the end, you have to decide for yourself keeping all the above information in mind.
On one hand, US economy has strong foundation. Even if there is a slowdown in second half of 2020, the markets are expected to recover well and healthily in <1 year. Same cannot be said for India. The GDP is declining more than expected and job losses are mounting. Indian government doesn’t have the wherewithal to support everyone whereas US just did. They are putting money in bank accounts directly, they are prepared to act tough if required.
On other hand, there may be short term challenges if companies go shy in sponsoring H1Bs which directly impacts internships and jobs. Also, cutting back on funding may lead to fewer assistantships and scholarships – making it overall more expensive. Dollar however remains strong.
But keeping all these facts aside, it boils down to what matters the most to you. We share a great technique below that you can use to make this decision more wisely for yourself.
