Westward, ahoy!

 After a long time, Ash left his room - his den since Covid began - for an outing with 10 other boys from his first school.V dropped him at a friend's place and picked him up in the evening from Dubai. They went for bowling in Dubai Snooker Club and ate pizza etc. He returned with a splitting headache after trekking up and down in the scorching summer sun. 

When vacations began, he had evinced an interest in cracking SAT and IELTS. Like most Gulf kids, he looks westward for education. Not surprising in a school like where the bulk of students are rich or can afford a western education. We have told him that he can go only if he gets a near-full scholarship which seems unlikely for UG courses. My bro had got a full scholarship including boarding for his post-PG studies in the UK.

So after warding off a few marketing calls from institutes that train SAT, NEET and other aspirants, me and Ash trudged to the nearest centre, Scoreplus. One Mrs Modi briefed us and told Ash he is pretty late if he plans to go next year, and asked him to join immediately. Of course, V said he has to think about it and he went on with his bargaining tactics for a while.

Bro advised Ash prepare on his own - not easy for someone who takes life too easy right now (getting up at 1 pm, netflixing and videogaming). IELTS may not be too difficult but there too he needs practice. I later found that he may not need SAT for many unis in Europe, which is what he is looking at and not the US of A. His reasons for wanting to go are: Europe is beautiful, he needs to get away from our control and nagging, and psychology courses are the best in the west. In Kerala, the first reaction to pursuing psychology is that it is a madman's course. My parents despite being educators themselves have already discouraged him; but bro has said it will have great scope in the future when machines replace most other jobs but cannot replace matters of the human mind.

Ash has cooled off on the SAT preparation now. Moreover, SAT seems optional this year owing to Covid, and academic scores might carry more weightage this year. 

In the end, we could opt for a uni here - the safest and easiest though not the cheapest option - or send him to India. Kerala or Bangalore are what I have in mind. The newer private universities like Krea and Ashoka seem interesting but are not easy to get in. 

Owing to his eczema issues, the UAE seems his best bet. I will pin my hopes on University of Birmingham Dxb or NYU Abu Dhabi and a 50% scholarship.