International Students
Time Zone Considerations
All instructors should hold synchronous course sessions during the assigned course time. Students should note the course meeting times listed in OPUS in Eastern Standard Time (EST) and should take any time zone differences into account when deciding whether to enroll in a course. Regular attendance and engagement during synchronous sessions are expected of all students, regardless of time zone.
Faculty may hold virtual office hours at a time that is convenient for their international students. Additional discussion sessions, outside of the primary course meeting, could also be held at alternative times."
Accessibility from International Locations
Many international students successfully complete Emory College Online courses every summer, so we expect minimal difficulties for students in most locations.
While accessibility from China (or any other country) is largely outside of our control, Canvas (canvas.emory.edu) has generally been accessible from China. Page load errors and timeouts could occur. It is recommended that students use VPN (see below), but this will not resolve all issues.
Course materials that you may post in Canvas (Google, YouTube, Vimeo, etc.) are likely to be unavailable from certain locations, and third-party integrations (VoiceThread, Examity, etc.) may also be problematic. If you have international students who may have trouble accessing materials, please be prepared to offer alternative assignments (via email if necessary).
TEST IP ADDRESS ACCESSIBILITY FROM CHINA
Zoom has generally been accessible from China, but it has occasionally been blocked. There are several countries from which Zoom and other educational technologies are not accessible for regulatory reasons.
VPN Services
Some students learning from restricted-internet locations may want to purchase and use a personal VPN, which generally costs about $10/month. Most students are already familiar with this process.