USC suspended in-person classes after Los Angeles saw its first cases of community transmission of COVID-19. All university-related travel, including several international reporting trips, were cancelled. Many students, especially those in graduate programs, saw these trips as career-launching opportunities. But all of a sudden, those opportunities came to a grinding halt.
These students were left with the awkward choice that many Americans now face across the country: try to maintain business as usual, or self-quarantine to avoid spreading the virus.