Spring 2020 | Vol 3 | Updates from the International Students & Programs Office @ UC San Diego .
Hello Campus Partners,
 
As new federal and state regulations are released to the public, ISPO strives to provide information on how these will impact current processes, international students, and campus partners. See important announcements below.
IMMIGRATION & PROCESS UPDATES
Required Quarantine for International Travelers
 
On July 1, 2020, the San Diego County Public Health Services issued an Order that now requires a 14-day quarantine period for individuals arriving or returning from travel from ALL international locations. In addition, the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines recommend that individuals arriving in the U.S. from ALL international locations should stay home for 14 days after returning from travel (quarantine), monitor their health, and practice social distancing. Please reference the CDC guidance on Returning from International Travel .

Because of the San Diego County Public Health Services order requirement and CDC guidelines, newly admitted and continuing Fall 2020 students coming from international locations will be required to self-quarantine for 14-days after arrival in San Diego.

  • Students with Fall 2020 on-campus housing contracts: They can complete the quarantine period in specially designated on-campus housing with no additional housing fees. Students will be charged for meals that will be delivered to the housing unit during quarantine. The on-campus housing option will be available from August 27-September 3, 2020 in order to allow enough time to complete the required quarantine period before the beginning of the Fall term.

  • Students without on-campus housing contracts or those who arrive AFTER September 3: They can complete the quarantine period at an off-campus location with family and/or friends. In addition, local hotel options will be available from Housing Dining Hospitality (HDH) by July 10, 2020. Students would be responsible for their own housing and meals costs.

For more information, please visit HDH COVID-19 FAQ site .
Four Visa and Immigration Policies Impacting International Students
 
  • Visa services remain suspended at U.S. embassies and consulates. The arrival of new and current international students and scholars may be delayed if they do not have a valid visa to enter the U.S.

  • Travel restrictions remain in place. On May 24, the Administration updated the 04/22/2020 Presidential Proclamation imposing travel restrictions into the United States. It suspends entry into the United States by certain non-U.S. citizens, who were physically present within the countries listed below during the 14-day period preceding their entry or attempted entry into the United States.The updated list of countries impacted by the Presidential Proclamation are Brazil, China (excluding Hong Kong and Macau), Iran, Ireland, United Kingdom, and the Schengen Area of Europe (Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland).

  • On 5/29/2020, the administration issued a Presidential Proclamation suspending entry of "certain students and researchers from the People's Republic of China (PRC)." The proclamation applies to all F-1 and J-1 international students and researchers who are Chinese nationals, and affiliated with any institution that "implements or supports" the PRC's " military-civil fusion strategy " (past or present affiliation), to include employment, study, conducting research, and/or receiving funding from these institutions. Undergraduate students are excluded from this proclamation.

  • On 6/22/2020, the administration issued a Presidential Proclamation that affects principally the H-1B and H-4 (H-1B dependents) classifications. The J-1 classification's subcategories that were impacted are not typically seen on university campuses, and the F-1 OPT/STEM OPT category was not mentioned. Faculty/researchers who have been offered positions by UC San Diego and are currently outside of the country waiting for U.S. consulates to resume visa services will not be able to come to the U.S. in H-1B status at this time.
Volunteer Translators and Interpreters Needed!

Calling all multilingual Faculty and Staff! ISPO is looking for additional translators/interpreters to serve as volunteers for the Interpretation Services Portal . The Interpretation Services Portal is available for UC San Diego faculty and staff to help facilitate effective communication when supporting students and their families with language needs. Via Single Sign-On, faculty and staff can select "I am an Interpreter" or "I need an Interpreter." This is NOT available for direct student use. Requests can only be made by faculty/staff and interpreters are UC San Diego staff/faculty who volunteer their time. If you have questions, please email itranslate@ucsd.edu
SUPPORTING INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS DURING COVID-19
Thank you to our campus partners who were able to attend ISPO's Webinar Series, SUPPORTING INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS DURING COVID-19.For those of you were unable to attend, please find the recordings accessible below at iWebinars.ucsd.edu.
Episode 1: Options for International Students After Graduation

Episode 2: Impacts for Newly-Admitted Fall 2020 International Students
SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS IMPACTED BY COVID-19
ISPO is continuing their line-up of Virtual Summer Programs to stay connected and engage our continuing and newly admitted students. For a list of all summer programming, check out iEvents.ucsd.edu.
Intercultural Social Hour
Tuesday, July 7th @ 4pm PST 

Join us for cross-cultural conversations and games - online! At Intercultural Social Hour you can share your international interests and experiences while making friends in a relaxing and fun environment. Join from wherever you are and let's play across time-zones! Learn more at  ievents.ucsd.edu  
Community Building Circles  
Wednesday, July 8 @ 7pm PST  

The ISPO Community Building circles are a shared space for international students to have supportive conversations about various topics that are relevant to the international student experience at UC San Diego. Our first Community Building Circle is Wednesday, July 8th at 7pm PST and we will be talking about building an International Student Community at UC San Diego.  Register here.  
ISPO Chats
Friday, July 17th, 8-9am PST 

We understand that the current COVID-19 situation affects international students in unique ways and want to ensure that your concerns are heard and addressed. The situation is evolving rapidly and we hope  this form  and the office hours allow us to advocate on your behalf, identify solutions in a timely manner, be more proactive, and improve communication with our international student community. Learn more at  ievents.ucsd.edu  
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WHY AM I RECEIVING THIS NEWSLETTER?  As a campus partner, your collaboration is important to us in supporting our international student community. The information sent in this Newsletter is available on ISPO's website, iStudents.ucsd.edu.  You have the right to unsubscribe from receiving updates from our office at anytime. You can do this by emailing  istudents@ucsd.edu  .