Events of September 11 complicate the process of applying for student visas Afterthe attacks of Sept. 11, there were a number of effects on the student body. One was an increased d ifficul ty for in terna tiona l stud en ts coming to the United States and enrolling in school. During the fa ll of 2001 , 225 in– terna tiona l students a ttend ed Har~ d ing. This fa ll, on ly 211 en rolled. "We found that even the kids that d id come this year had a lot more difficulty in getting their vi– sas, "Nic k y Boyd , di rec tor of Walton Scholars said. "I thin k it has been a lot ha rder for those that want to come. And I think there is a perception interna– tionally that it's harder to come to the U.s. and study." Many international studen ts had al read y exper ienced d ifficulti es coming to th e Un ited States. Senior I1 ir Skendaj had to stay home in Albania for an entire se– meste r in 2000 before he was al– lowed to return to the United States. li lt is common to run into trouble getting a visa in Eastern European countries," Skendaj said . "The process of app lying is com– p lete ly subjective, even if you have a ll the required informa tion, th ey can still reject you ." Nand ish Dayal, a sophomore from Fiji, said the U.S. Embassy in Fiji had always been stringent on giv ing ou t visas. The day he went to apply for his visa, Dayal was th e only one of 46 who received a traveling permit. " Thaven' t had any trouble get– ting home and back," Dayal said . "Although even before Sept. 11, getDuring his shift as lab operator in the Ezell building, Endri Baduni, a senior from Albania, works with Jason Balota, a junior from Singapore. Some international students held jobs on campus to help offset the cost of studying abroad. (Photo by April Clem) Senior Anibal Tamacas,a computer sci- . ence major from South America, plays his guitar at the Jennings Osborne barbecue Oct. 5. Easing the transition to a foreign country, international students involved themselves in familiar activities. (Photo by Amy Beene) ti ng my visa was not easy." The Walton Scholarship Pro– gram brough t 13 new students to the campus to make 60 total Walton Scholars from Mexico and Central America. Accordi n g to Dani el Velasco, graduate stud ent working as an as– sistant to Boyd , in ternational stu– dents were a llowed to obtai n visas approved th rough the length of their scholarship, instead of hav– ing to renew visas every year. Even with the longer visas, get– ting the visa initially was a compli– cated process. "Students have to provide more I proof tha t they are coming to study here in thestates,"Velascosaid. liThe process of getting a visa has become much more involved." -Rynll Snul international students 33 ~Iml .
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