The UBC Graduate Student Society and other Canadian graduate student societies are calling on the federal government to allow international graduate students to quarantine at university residences, rather than stay at government-approved hotels.
Currently, federal quarantining rules require people entering the country to book a 3-day stay in a hotel and test negative before continuing to their quarantine location to finish the required 14-day period. The government has said this stay could cost up to $2,000 for the three days.
In a press release, the graduate student societies wrote that while they understand the need for travel restrictions, these are inequitable barriers for those entering the country as essential travellers.
“The three-day mandatory hotel stay is unaffordable and financially inaccessible for a lot of our graduate students,” said Alireza Kamyabi, VP external at UBC’s Graduate Student Society (GSS).
Kamyabi said this advocacy was expedited with announcements from some universities and from BC’s provincial health officer that campuses will be reopening in the fall, but said this has been a problem since “day one.”
“Graduate students are a bit of a different story … because they have to come to Canada for their studies. They can’t do it virtually because they often need access to labs and research spaces here on campuses on Canadian soil,” he said, adding that this makes graduate students essential travellers in his opinion.
While Kamyabi said their current advocacy is focused on highlighting graduate students’ need to come to Canada, the GSS is hoping for broader action from the federal government that would apply to all students.
“As organizations advocating on behalf of graduate students, our priority is the health and safety of our respective student bodies and broader community,” the press release states.
“We believe university residences’ isolation programs are a safe, equitable and affordable alternative to mandatory 3-day hotel stay for international graduate students who must enter the country for their research and studies.”
UBC currently has quarantining facilities in Walter Gage. Ahead of the start of semester, students coming from abroad were able to quarantine for free. Now, students have to pay $79 daily plus tax for a 14-day stay. Students in need can apply for a subsidized rate of $45 per day.