ISPO News eBulletin for Campus Partners: Spring 2021, Vol 7. (6/02/21)

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Spring 2021 | Vol 7 | 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. Please contact ISPO and let us know how we can continue to support your efforts.

Updates and Information

Commencement Support Information- ISPO Resource Page

Students completing their degrees this academic year may have questions about traveling to the U.S. to attend commencement on June 12th and 13th in person. F-1 students who are already in the U.S. may remain in the U.S. for an additional period after their last date of enrollment at UC San Diego (also known as their grace period). F-1 students have a 60-day grace period while J-1 students have 30 days. Students studying abroad in their final quarter may need to consider other options to travel to the U.S. if unable to return prior to their last date of classes at UC San Diego. For questions regarding travel and visas to attend commencement for international students, please visit ISPO's Graduating from UC San Diego page.

Summer 2021 Employment for International Students

The summer term is generally considered a vacation term for international students and does not require enrollment. While employment on-campus is limited to 20 hours or less (part-time) during the academic year, students are eligible to accept on-campus employment and work more than 20 hours during summer vacation terms. In addition, students who are eligible to engage in CPT (Paid off-campus employment ), may also work off-campus in addition to pursuing on-campus opportunities. While the regulations do not restrict students from accepting on-campus and off-campus work during vacation terms and the ability to exceed 40 hours a week in total, ISPO reminds hiring departments to check in with international students regarding their well-being when balancing various responsibilities in the summer.

As a reminder, please remember to check in with students regarding their physical location during proposed periods of on-campus employment. International students working remotely outside of the U.S may be subject to additional tax and payroll restrictions and should discuss abilities to continue or begin remote work after the Spring 2021 term. For more information:

Undergraduate Student Employment: Contact the Student Employment Office in the Career Center at studentemployment@ucsd.edu
Graduate Student Employment: Contact the Graduate Affairs Financial Affairs Unit.

Fall 2020 Admits: CPT Eligibility for the 21/22 Academic Year

NOTE: The following guidance is specifically for graduate students who began a program of study at UC San Diego for the first time between Fall 2020 and Spring 2021.

Due to the impacts of the COVID-19 emergency on travel, Fall 2020 admitted students were unable to enter the U.S. in F-1 status to start accruing time towards the one academic year requirement for Curricular Practical Training (CPT) in F-1 status. In Summer 2020, ISPO conveyed to students in this situation that "exceptions to the one academic year requirement are provided for students enrolled in graduate studies that require immediate participation in curricular practical training”. [8 CFR 241.2(f)(10)(I)]. It was explained that these exception requests will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, in consultation with the academic department.

In March 2021, ISPO reviewed the policy and became aware of how exceptions to the one-year requirement for CPT may have a potential impact on individuals who apply for future immigration benefits such as H-1B or U.S. permanent residency. Due to increased scrutiny of such applications by U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) when reviewing previous practical training authorization, ISPO enhanced advising and application materials regarding CPT eligibility for Summer 2021 to mitigate risk and support our students. While the policy explicitly addressed eligibility for Summer 2021 CPT, we are now receiving questions from FA20 admits who, due to continued impacts of the COVID-19 emergency on travel, have not been able to enter the U.S. and are seeking guidance on pursuing CPT upon arrival in the 2021-2022 academic year.

For Fall 2020 Admits who were enrolled full-time in the Fall, Winter and Spring terms, residing in the U.S. or abroad, and have entered the U.S. in F-1 status, ISPO will continue to support their Fall 2021 CPT requests if they are eligible for the one academic year exception.

For Fall 2020 Admits, who deferred their admission to Winter 2021 or Spring 2021 and have entered the U.S. in F-1 status, ISPO will continue to support their Fall 2021 CPT requests if they are eligible for the one academic year exception.

What does this mean for advisors?

Advising: Students in these admit terms will be made aware of the above-mentioned risks and will be asked to certify their understanding by submitting an attestation within their CPT iPortal request. Students can visit CPT.ucsd.edu for more information. Departments are asked to forward questions regarding associated risks or impacts to future benefits to ISPO (iEmployment@ucsd.edu).
Support Letters: ISPO recommends that departments provide graduate students with an Experiential Learning Support Letter to retain for their own records. Please visit the iPortal for Campus Departments webpage for more information about this verification, including a template letter for you to use. These letters will help demonstrate department support in enrolling in an internship course that requires experiential learning.

NOTE: For Fall 2021 and beyond admits, as campus anticipates teaching to be primarily in-person with normal classroom occupancy in accordance with public health guidelines, ISPO expects a return to normal operations and will only recommend CPT for students who are lawfully enrolled on a full-time basis for one full academic year (or three academic terms such as Fall, Winter and Spring) with an active SEVIS records. Exceptions to the one-year academic year requirement will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Students must verify that the internship is an integral part of an established curriculum and requires immediate participation in curricular practical training. More information coming soon. Please contact Dulce Dorado, ISPO Director, at ddorado@ucsd.edu if you have any questions regarding this information.

Summer Arrival to the U.S. for Students Subject to Geographic COVID Entry/ Travel Bans

On May 13th, the State Department updated its National Interest Exception (NIE) page to expand certain NIE eligibilities to all countries subject to a geographic COVID-19 entry or travel bans. This includes Brazil, China, Iran, Ireland, South Africa, United Kingdom, and the Schengen Area of Europe, and most recently, India.

The notice highlights the August 1st date in order to be eligible for the NIE. Only students with valid F-1/J-1 Visas and courses beginning or resuming after August 1st will be eligible for the NIE. Students who will begin their programs in FA21 are eligible for the NIE and do not need to take further action.

NOTE: Individuals who are eligible for the NIE but do not have a valid visa will need to apply for a visa at a U.S. embassy or consulate. ISPO is aware that currently, many of the locations are still closed or experiencing long processing delays. For updated information, visit the State Department's Visa Appointment Wait Time website.

While we have observed inconsistencies in how the policy is being implemented at different embassies and consulates, it is clear that students with in-person or hybrid coursework that begins prior to 8/1 are not eligible for the NIE and must apply for an individual NIE to seek entry. On May 3, 2021, the NAFSA Association of International Educators wrote a letter to the U.S. Department of State advocating for clarity and revisions to the NIE.

Options for Summer 2021 Arrival to the U.S:

In order to seek entry into the U.S. to begin courses before August 1st, students subject to entry bans have the following options:

Adjust Courses/Enrollment to Begin on August 2 (Summer Session II)- Students initially planning to enroll in Summer Session I coursework, research, or early start programs, can discuss options with their departments to enroll in Summer Session II in order to secure coursework to start/resume after 8/1. Students seeking entry to the U.S. for the first time to enroll with UC San Diego will need to request to update their I-20 or DS-2019 to reflect a Summer Session II Start Date. Students will only be eligible to seek entry to the U.S. within 30 days of classes resuming.

Request an Individual NIE with a U.S. Embassy or Consulate- Students who can demonstrate that their travel is in the national interest of the U.S. and are qualified for a NIE may contact their nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate to request an individual NIE prior to travel. Individual Embassies and Consulates may differ in response time and issuance.

iPortal Updates: OPT I-20 Requests (Graduate Students Only)

Please note the following updates in reviewing and approval iPortal Requests for graduate student OPT I-20 Requests in iPortal as of 5/18/21:

Expected Term of Completion has been renamed to Final Term of Enrollment.
Comprehensive exam or thesis defense has been added as a separate date to verify (if applicable).
Last Date of Student Employment has been renamed to On Campus Student Employment and added as a separate date to verify.

For more information please review our iPortal for Campus Departments page. If you have any questions, email iportal@ucsd.edu!