Is It Mandatory for Students Studying Abroad to Have Travel Insurance?
The number of students opting for an international degree is increasing by the day and it is not going to reduce anytime in the near future. The money involved in obtaining an international degree is very high and every care that can be taken to ensure that the expenses do not further increase should be taken. In order to do this a travel insurance plan should be invested in because this is going to go a long way in ensuring that the course of the stay abroad for studies is as smooth as possible.
There are a number of insurance companies providing different plans with different inclusions and benefits and it is always better to compare different online travel insurance plans to have a better understanding of what is available in the market. There is not much difference between a standard travel insurance plan and a student travel insurance plan but there are a few points of difference which should be made a note of. They are customized to suit the need of the student and unlike a standard insurance which needs to be renewed each year, the ones for students provide cover for three year at a stretch which is usually the duration of the course abroad.
Apart from the fact that it protects the student at the time of emergencies, it is also something that has been made mandatory by the universities for students choosing to study with them. Having travel insurance is more than just have a medical cover. Students should go for a policy that goes beyond your medical related coverage. It should cover other contingencies like sponsor protection (it helps in the reimbursement of tuition fee in the event of the death of a sponsor), bail bond (in the event of a false arrest or a wrongful detention) and coverage against study interruption. A regular policy covers only health emergencies, loss or theft of baggage, loss of travel documents, flight cancellations and trip interruptions but nothing specific to a student.
With the increasing number of students travelling abroad the number of emergency incidents has also increased. To cater to this, insurance companies have changed their policies and included more risks like treatment of nervous or mental disorders, treatment for drugs and alcohol and cases involving suicide. If students want they can pay extra premium and also get coverage against psychological treatment, treatment for expecting mothers, benefits for childcare and cost of any examination or screening. The policy should cover the student outside the premises of the campus as well because certain policies only provide coverage within the campus.
The guidelines of the policy should be in sync with the guidelines of the university otherwise the students stand a chance of losing the benefit of an insurance waiver which is offered to them from the university in case the coverage of the policy does not cater to the guidelines of the university.
Universities usually have link ups with local insurance providers and students should check if the university allows purchase of policy from a company outside the network as stated by the university.
One should ideally try to buy the insurance from their home country itself because it proves to be much cheaper than one bought in a foreign land.
