International students were alarmed by a memorandum released by USC Viterbi on Monday, describing what felt like a drastic change in the landscape of internship opportunities available to them.
In the memorandum, Viterbi stated that based on recommendations provided by the USC Office of International Services, students may not participate in internship programs outside of the USC area, which officially extends to LA County, Ventura County and Orange County.
The university has encountered issues with several countries that have refused to recognize foreign degrees earned by students who completed their courses remotely. Because of this, OIS also states that international students are required to attend all their classes in person.
“Everyone feels like we don’t know what to do. We’re just confused,” said a Viterbi PhD candidate studying material sciences and engineering, who was granted anonymity by Annenberg Media on the basis of their visa status. “This policy is posted, and we’re not sure what we can do about that. We might just have to accept the fact, and it’s really sad.”
Many students have mentioned that they were previously unaware of the memorandum, due to the influx of new regulations for international students under the Trump administration.
This memorandum is not exactly new news. According to Viterbi Vice Dean Erik Johnson, the policies outlined in the memorandum have been in place at the federal level across multiple presidential administrations.
“There’s nothing here that’s new,” he said. “It’s because some students have not been in compliance with their visa rules and have gotten in trouble. They’ve been denied opportunities for post-graduation employment.”
The memorandum is almost identical to a 2023 announcement, drafted and sent to faculty and staff, which reiterates the same policies and rules now reissued for student review.
Dean Johnson explained that a large portion of the confusion stems from flexible professors who have allowed students to participate in courses remotely. He wants students to turn to the university policy rather than seeking advice or exceptions from professors.
“Don’t talk to your instructor because the faculty generally do not know what the rules are,” Dean Johnson said. “So the best place is to talk to the advising staff in Viterbi or talk to OIS.”
However, recent mass layoffs across the Viterbi academic advising department have left international students unsure of where to turn for guidance, driving them to seek direction and support from their professors now more than ever.
“Even if the professors want to be convenient and adjust towards us, understanding our situation, they can’t really do it because they are also bound by the rules that the university is providing them right now,” said a USC Viterbi second-year master’s student studying engineering management, who Annenberg Media granted anonymity because of their visa status. “It’s all a bit messed up,”
Still, international students feel limited in applying for local internships, especially when those local opportunities may not always align with their desired field.
“It seems a little bit restrictive because I feel like depending on the industry, some have hubs in certain parts of the United States,” said a USC Viterbi senior studying biomedical engineering, who was granted anonymity by Annenberg Media on the basis of her visa status. “If I’m limited to only certain jobs in certain locations, then I wouldn’t be able to apply to as many kinds of opportunities.”
The same student cited the preexisting pressures faced by international students, who encounter a different and more intensive set of criteria than domestic students when it comes to job searches and interviews. This policy further limits where they can look for opportunities.
“We would still need sponsorship down the line, and a lot of companies won’t even consider us or interview us,” she said. “That has to lead to us mass applying and mass networking and doing so many extra kinds of activities that we just need to do in order to just get our foot in the door.”
These layered restrictions have discouraged some international students who originally came with the hope of establishing long-term careers in the U.S. from pursuing those same goals.
“You know what? I don’t want to stay here anymore,” said the USC Viterbi PhD candidate. “We do our work, and we work hard. We cannot meet our parents quite often because of our immigration status as well. So we do have to sacrifice a lot, and even if we sacrifice a lot, I feel like the policies don’t want us to stay and contribute anymore. So if that’s the case, I’ll just leave.”
As international students express increasing insecurity about future opportunities, Dean Johnson assured the community that the university still has resources dedicated to international students and is available to help.
“Our career services provide opportunities for all students, international and domestic, in looking for job opportunities,” he said. “There are opportunities for internships remotely, which mostly started during COVID, but some companies are still doing them.”
Many international students hope that immigration-related tensions will soon ease and that university life will become less restrictive.
“I hope the policy will be removed, and we can all get the equal opportunity to apply for jobs,” said the USC Viterbi PhD student. “We don’t want to be distinguished because of our immigration status. I hope we can get equal opportunity to internships.”