Am not headed to Australia this fall. BUT !!!

In part 1 of this post, I had posted the problem. About the campus safety. I am now updating the post with a great initiative which works for safety of the international students. read on..

image courtesy : http://www.flickr.com/photos/rkelland/256698282/

Part 1 - Campus Safety

The Campus-safety aspect barely features on the list of considerations when selecting a MBA program. Even I had not given it a serious thought till now as we hardly hear any untoward incidents in US B schools.

But off-late I am getting deeply disturbed by reading the news ( Here and here ) about the attacks on Indian students and professionals in Australia. I cannot really comment if all the attacks were racist by nature, surely a part of them were. The campus safety is what we take for granted in many scenarios. I deeply empathize and sympathize the internationals (not just Indians) who are becoming victims of such inhuman attacks. I clearly feel that no measures are being taken to effectively stop such attacks and punish such antisocial elements. It becomes the natural duty of any such international education destination country to protect the international students coming to that country.

Though am not headed towards Aussies this fall and US feels relatively safer destination, I feel I should at least do some preliminary research about the crime rate and campus safety measures of my target b schools. This way me and my parents can be relatively ensured about my safety while I pursue my MBA away from my home for 2 years.

I urge all my fellow applicants not to ignore this part. Be safe !!!

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Part 2 - One possible solution

I came across this interesting organization called Sara’s Wish Foundation which is working towards students who opt to study abroad. There is a story behind the start of this organization. I will quote the full article from International student blog for the benefit of me and other prospective applicants who are heading abroad for studies. Here it goes

In 1996, Sara Schewe, a student at Georgetown University, was killed, along with 3 other students from her program, while taking a bus in India to see the Taj Mahal. Since that time, Charles and Anne Schewe have dedicated themselves to bringing awareness on how to minimize safety issues while traveling abroad.
Since 1996, there have been a number of advances in the materials and information available from the U.S. government, colleges, universities and study abroad programs, other organizations, as well as support available through insurance and emergency assistance providers. There have also been domestic and international meetings and workshops supporting improved health and safety policies and procedures to support U.S. college and university students.
Sara’s Wish Foundation has collaborated with some of these organizations to develop the video “Know Before You Go”, and to put together the information you will find on their website. The information and links are intended to help inform students, parents, and friends who may go abroad or support others who do, that knowing more about good study abroad program practices and health and safety challenges in countries around the world can help students have a healthy and safe time abroad.
Foreign travel and study abroad remains an invaluable learning experience, broadening a student’s world view and enhancing the college experience. While there have been advancements in the field since this incident to ensure student safety, precautions must still be taken, students and families need to research about benefits and risks associated with a particular location and/or program, and understand that the quality of support does vary from institution to institution and from program to program. It is Sara’s Wish Foundation’s hope that together we can avoid tragedies and difficulties as students begin that wondrous adventure to broaden their lives.
For more information, please visit the Sara’s Wish Foundation website where you will find further, excellent information and advice.