Students studying abroad in Mexico may return home earlier than expected as the swine flu sickens hundreds across the country.

University sophomore Randall Bourquin who is studying in Monterrey, Mexico, said the Mexican government closed all public gatherings in the country’s capital Saturday, and on Sunday night closed all schools until May 6.

“The last three or four days [in Mexico], there’s been a lot in the news about the flu,” he said in a phone interview Monday. “There’s this huge degree of uncertainty of what international students are going to do.”

The swine flu gained global attention in the past week after being linked to more than 1,300 illnesses in Mexico and 64 cases in the United States, according to the Center for Disease Control. No victims have been reported in Georgia as of Tuesday evening.

Bourquin, whose program is independent of the study abroad office at the University, is living with other international students at the University of Monterrey and said “no one really knows what to do.” Some students have left already, and others have changed travel plans, he said. As of Monday afternoon, he was trying to get in touch with the U.S. Consulate in Mexico City to determine if he could re-enter the United States and stay in Texas until May 6, when he hopes the government will have made a decision on re-opening schools. He is concerned about whether he will receive class credit if he is unable to return to Monterrey and finish school, but he will choose “health before credits,” he said.

He has been keeping in touch with both of his schools to keep track of events, he said.

Bourquin does not know anyone who has been infected with the swine flu, but knows of one death in Monterrey so far.

Colleen Larson, a professor of international affairs, is in charge of a University-sponsored study abroad in Monterrey. In a phone interview Tuesday, Larson confirmed that all universities in Mexico are closed through May 6 and said “if [students] want to come home, we’ll work with them on that.”

She said the University of Monterrey will be granting students – who may decide to leave the country early – online access to submit remaining coursework for the rest of the semester. Larson said the study abroad office would do its best to make sure students earn their full credits. The office will assist students by proctoring exams, working with host universities to allow students to complete assignments in the U.S. and submit them electronically. The office also will host some classes at the University.

She said the hours students’ international courses were worth would count as attempted hours under the HOPE scholarship, and they would not receive any additional finances to pay for an extended stay due to the swine flu.

“They already receive a [financial aid] based on credits they take,” she said.

Nicki Sauls, a professor of student affairs in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences, said students are expressing concern about their upcoming Maymester food and nutrition study abroad in Xalapa, Mexico. If the swine flu situation worsens, Sauls said in a phone interview Tuesday, there are three options for the program – to postpone it, cancel it or relocate it. The problem with relocation, she said, is that it would not “be the same experience students are looking for.”

All study abroad program coordinators are keeping a close watch for updates from the CDC and the World Health Organization.

“We are asking [students] to follow all CDC and state department guidelines,” Larson said.

Ralph Tripp, a professor in the department of infectious diseases, has been in touch with the CDC and WHO, as his lab is designated by the National Institutes of Health as a Regional Center of Excellence of Influenza Research and Surveillance.

The swine flu, strain H1N1, is a “pool of three different viruses” – human, avian and swine, Tripp said in a phone interview Tuesday. H1N1 is referred to as the swine flu because the “H” – which stands for “hemoglutination gene” – has a swine origin, he said.

The flu did not originate in swine, regardless of its popular name.

In an e-mail alert sent to students, faculty and staff of the College of Veterinary Medicine, David Reeves, associate professor of population health, wrote “the World Organization for Animal Health is recommending that a more appropriate name for the virus would be ‘North American influenza’ since there is no evidence of animal involvement.”

Tripp said pork is safe to eat, and consuming it will not transmit the strain of swine influenza.

What does transmit the virus is “respiratory droplet secretion,” he said.

This includes coughing, sneezing and direct contact with surfaces that an infected person has coughed on. He advises people to follow the “six foot rule” and to stand at least six feet away from infected people.

Swine flu symptoms are the “same as regular influenza,” he said, and “if the H1N1 is reported, minimize group contact in that area.”