Dear M.S. in Applied Economics Students and Community,
I hope that you and your families are safe and well during this unusual and trying time. As we adjust to this period of unprecedented change and uncertainty, please know that our students and the larger MSAE community remain at the forefront of what we do.
Over the past several weeks, the Boston College family and I have been working behind the scenes to provide options for those of you that are affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to health concerns, travel restrictions, testing center closings, etc.
I want to take this opportunity to provide some updates, answer questions that our team has been receiving, and encourage all of you to get in touch with me if you have any questions. The most efficient way to communicate with our team is via our email account, appliedeconomics@bc.edu.
As the situation continues to develop in the U.S, I encourage you to check the BC COVID-19 updates website regularly. This site contains the most up-to-date information about developments at B.C. You can reach the site at: https://www.bc.edu/content/bc-web/sites/updates/coronavirus.html. Some of the adjustments that may impact you include:
- The U.S. government has relaxed rules surrounding online education for international students. As this is a very fluid situation, I am not summarizing these changes here, but our Office of International Students as Scholars (OISS) is maintaining a site with updates, which you can find at: https://www.bc.edu/offices/oiss/COVID-19.html.
- Right now, no decision has been made for Fall 2020. We are working under the assumption that we will proceed as scheduled. Online courses should not be affected, and we are looking to move face-to-face sessions online if needed. Right now, international students in the United States on F-1 visas can be entirely online, and the U.S. Government will announce any changes to this accommodation. Please stay tuned, and we will share more details as soon as we have them. International students who are not on an F-1 visa can take online courses without restrictions, as long as they are not physically in the U.S.
- Due to concerns around access to testing, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, our GRE/GMAT requirement is now optional for our Summer 2020 and Fall 2020 applicants.
- This program was designed so that students could take courses online, on campus, or a combination of the two modes and still receive the same rigorous education from world-class faculty. All U.S. and international students can start online this summer or fall, and transition to on-campus at a later date if they choose.
I will continue to update all students as we learn more in the coming weeks. Stay safe and well, and please keep us posted if you need any help. We will get through this together!
Best,
Sasha
Aleksandar (Sasha) Tomic, Ph.D.
Associate Dean for Strategy, Innovation and Technology
Program Director, MS in Applied Economics,
Woods College of Advancing Studies
Associate Professor of the Practice
Department of Economics,
Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences