Some students still living at Columbia University dorms were lucky to be able to celebrate graduation Wednesday alongside roommates and friends who were unable to go home when stay-at-home orders went into effect in New York as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. The school hosted a virtual commencement ceremony and even had a song written for new the grads. But being unable to share an important milestone with close friends or family, meant students had to get creative. Some chose to watch the livestream with roommates in their dorm rooms, while others headed for campus, wearing their caps and gowns and ready to celebrate and watch commencement on their laptops. Lal Uncu called the experience "bittersweet." But knowing everyone else was watching at the same time made it all the better, she told the Associated Press. Class of 2020 student president and international student Sambhav Jain said he never went home to India because he never thought things would get so bad in the city or last this long. A friend and dormmate of Uncu's, they hosted a celebration with other roommates on the steps of Low Memorial Library. Jain says it's hard not to think about his family at this time but credits his school friends for helping him get through the last two months of quarantine. "I definitely found a family here. I wouldn't be able to survive these two months without them," he said. The school gave special permission to students who were unable to go home when conditions grew dire in New York in March, their situations ranging from being unable to fly home to not having a place to self-quarantine or even having a parent as an essential worker. The students can now stay in university housing through the end of June. To prevent the virus from spreading on campus, students were reassigned to apartments to give them enough space. And while some students are living alone, others are "lucky" to have a roommate in apartments large enough for five people. Housemates Morgan Kang and Andrew Rodriguez say they're grateful for the extra time on campus, as well as the extra space. Kang's mother works at a doctor's office in the city and her mother's apartment was much too small for an extra person at this time. So, Kang asked for a housing extension to give her ample time find a sublet near campus. "I feel actually very lucky that we've been able to have this great open space, so we can get some fresh air without having to worry about social distancing. And it's actually been a pretty comfortable experience," she said. Her housemate Andrew Rodriguez of Long Island, New York, who lives with his grandmother, father and two siblings, was also afraid of putting his family at risk. The coronavirus causes only mild symptoms in many, but it can cause serious illness or death for some, particularly older adults and those with certain health conditions. The U.S. ranks first in the world in the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus. Worldwide, the outbreak has infected more than 5 million people and killed over 330,000, according to the same Johns Hopkins University tally based on figures supplied by government health authorities around the globe, though it has become increasingly clear that the true numbers are much higher.