Many college students in the US said they would rather skip this fall semester than follow school policies requiring COVID-19 vaccinations before in-person class attendance.
Northern Illinois University (NIU) junior Justin Mishler said that his original plan was to continue pursuing his degree. However, his plans changed when the institution began requiring students to submit proof of vaccination.
“I was excited but when I saw you had to be vaccinated, I decided to keep working instead,” he told CNBC. “I’m not going to abide by stuff I don’t believe in.”
Montana State University (MSU) student Dylan Dean also claims that universities imposing vaccine mandates fail to recognize that a person can become immune through a previous coronavirus infection.
Although his school does not require students to be vaccinated, the electrical engineering major said he withdrew his enrollment this fall because he “had no faith” MSU would not implement a vaccine mandate. “I was worried there would be mandates. [My parents] don’t agree with me politically, but they know this is my decision,” he explained.
Majority Support Vaccine Mandates
Earlier this year, many schools informed students they needed to receive COVID-19 shots before entering campus and attending in-person classes.
MSU President Waded Cruzado emphasized in a letter to the community that vaccine mandates are a precautionary measure to protect students and employees returning to campus.
Although some students have criticized the move, a recent survey found that 85 percent of respondents are okay with universities requiring student vaccinations.
Around 87 percent of students surveyed also said they support mask mandates on-campus as protection against the highly contagious Delta variant.
