“I am alone. We are social creatures but with the lock-down I have no one to interact with”.

For Benedicta Bintang Zefanya, pandemic means she cannot explore Australia

At times Bintang feels alone and she needs other people to be with not just with her dog. She wants to understand more about Australia and make friends. Source: Supplied - Benedicta Bintang Zefanya at her place, Melb 9 Aug 2020.

International students in Australia have faced difficult times during the pandemic. Their studies have been disrupted, some have lost valuable part-time work, they face real stress. For those living in Victoria there is the new difficulty of dealing with Stage 4 restrictions and a curfew.

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Published 14 August 2020 12:22am

By sri dean

Presented by sri dean

Source: SBS

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International students in Australia have faced difficult times during the pandemic. Their studies have been disrupted, some have lost valuable part-time work, they face real stress. For those living in Victoria there is the new difficulty of dealing with Stage 4 restrictions and a curfew.

During the pandemic, the isolation that people can feel when they are away from home has been exacerbated for international students. Shintia D.W. Randell, a Masters of Marketing Communications student at Melbourne University, Charin Rona Lumban Batu, a Masters in Public Policy student at Melbourne University and Benedicta (Bintang) Zefanya, a Marketing and Media student at Monash University compare their feelings and experiences.

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