International Students In The UAE Who Sought Further Education in USA Are Changing Plans

International students worldwide, especially in the UAE, who have been planning to further their college or university educations in America now have no choice but to rethink these lifelong aspirations due to the doubt by President Donald Trump’s recent ban. 

Although the ban is stated to take place for a three-month period, a lot of students are already reconsidering their dreams of pursing an Ivy League degree or following on family member’s footsteps of studying in the U.S.A. 

In Abu Dhabi alone,  two students, one from Syria and the other from Iraq have stated that they feel ‘lost’

Suzan Monzer from Syria, Zena Shamkhy from Iraq and Sara Khalil from Sudan, students at Cambridge High School Abu Dhabi, originally wanted to pursue medical field studies in America. But all three told The National, “We were opting for America not just because of the quality of education but also because we heard lots of good stories about the multicultural and tolerant American society. But I have lost hope in America,” said Sara. Sara was born and raised in the United Arab Emirates but is now looking into studying in Canada instead. 

Ain Iraqi student in Dubai also spoke out to The National

An 18- year old Iraqi student in the city, Ohannes Ohannes, has family members in the States and initially sought to study economics there. He mentioned to The National about leaving Iraq due to the invasion in 2004 and the feeling of being unwanted again today. 

He said “Having visited the US several times to celebrate the festive season with my family, I feel like this has been taken from me. Just because I was born in Baghdad, I no longer have the ability to go see my grandma, uncles, aunts and cousins.”