USC laid off an additional 295 employees, according to the latest notices filed with the state of California on September 11 and 14.
Over half of those laid off worked for the USC Keck School of Medicine, 33 of whom are professors expected to remain in their positions until later in the semester.
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Andrew Guzman said that a “large bulk” of layoffs had been completed at an Academic Senate meeting on Wednesday.
Guzman said that USC established a plan to save $400 million by the end of its 2026 fiscal year to help reduce the operating budget deficit and set the University up for financial success in the future.
These recent layoffs bring the total count to 637 employees since July, with more expected in the future.
On the University Park campus, USC laid off an additional 135 employees and reduced the hours of two more. A large portion of the cuts were made to research administration staff.
Interim President Beong Soo Kim released a statement in July announcing that the University plans to reduce employee headcounts in an attempt to resolve a projected operating budget deficit of over $200 million for the 2025 fiscal year.
USC also implemented other strategies to reduce operating costs, such as discontinuing the Academic Achievement Award and Exceptional Funding program, which allowed qualified undergraduates to enroll in extra courses for free.
A memo released on Wednesday, August 27, by Interim President Kim stated that the strategies to reduce the operating budget deficit are working.
The University expects to lay off or reduce hours for more employees in the future, according to documents filed with the City of Los Angeles Economic & Workforce Development Department.