The VU has not taken into account their international students this year. Aside from the housing problem for which many students have already complained, there also exists another issue. The exam dates for Period 2 are such that many of us internationals will not be able to fly home to see our families for Christmas - a family oriented holiday. With exams as late as Christmas Eve for some courses, the prices of flights to any country can be around triple the price and seats are harder to find. We are all students - the financial status of the majority of us means that that is not something we can reasonably afford.

Many universities in other countries have much lengthier breaks - from three to even four weeks. We do not ask to change the whole academic calendar, but we do ask to be understood for wanting to see our families and homes. The exam dates limit us so much that many students will not be able to go home at all - this will be detrimental to their mental health. Not to mention, there are internationals who need to go home for medical and medicine related reasons which cannot be rearranged, which in this case, they must decide between their health and education. We ask for the option to sit exams online, in the same sense that we are still allowed to follow lectures online, giving us not only extra time to fly home to be with our families, but the chance for those who need to prioritise their health to be able to do it, and for many, the chance to finally be at a home again.