Courtesy of Sean Elliot
Members of the Connecticut College campus community may have noticed an increase in the number of emails from Dean Patton across the last few weeks of the summer and into September. The more observant students among this group may have noticed the rather important subject line: changes to international student visa statuses and off-campus internship opportunities.
On July 17th, 2026, the Trump administration rolled out a rule replacing the duration of status rule for F-1 (international student) visa holders with a fixed admission period. While the law is currently blocked by an injunction from a Massachusetts district court, if implemented, it would limit the validity of F-1 student visas to strictly four years, with shortened grace periods for residence upon graduation. The law would also make it more difficult for international students to apply for extensions of stay, and potentially limit mobility between academic programs.
In mid-August, the administration announced, through broadcast messages, further restrictions on international students and F-1 visa holders via the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), a division of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) under the Department of Homeland Security, currently under the leadership of recent appointee Markwayne Mullin: these proposed changes would restrict Curricular Practical Training (CPT) authorization exclusively to programs where an internship is a mandatory requirement for graduation explicitly listed in the university catalog for all students within the major.
In simple terms, this prevents universities from authorizing off-campus internships for F-1 visa holders unless they are a graduation requirement.
As a result, major universities around the U.S. have halted pending and current CPT authorizations, and reversed previously approved authorizations in some cases, in order to avoid losing SEVP certification- Conn included.
A majority of institutions have explained this action as being taken out of abundance of caution, as being SEVP certified indicates that a university is legally authorized to enroll international students and F-1 visa holders; without this distinction, schools would lose their ability to recruit international academic and athletic talent to come to the U.S.
These decisions have also put a significant amount of strain on international students currently attending U.S. institutions, limiting pre-professional opportunities and causing some to re-evaluate their academic and professional futures in the country.
The changes have met a significant amount of criticism to complement the existing court injunctions, with groups such as the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, a coalition of over 500 college and university presidents criticizing the unnecessary administrative burden that the new rules place on higher education.
Top universities such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have also protested duration of status changes for their negative effects on the number of candidates from the international talent pool applying to U.S. institutions; they have also pointed out that many doctorate and higher-level degrees can take longer than four years, limiting the ability of international students to pursue tertiary educational opportunities.
At Conn, all CPT authorizations are currently on pause, leaving some students disappointed this summer as they were unable to engage with professional development opportunities in the way they expected.
Conn’s international student/F-1 visa holder percentage typically hovers around 6% of the total student body, though the class of 2030 has a slightly higher proportion of international students at approximately 8%. Editors of The College Voice sat down with several international students as well as with Dean Carmela Patton, Associate Dean of the College and International Student Advisor.
The students interviewed have chosen to remain anonymous. In the interest of journalistic accuracy on a highly technical and personal subject, the content of the interviews and what they chose to share is printed below.
Student #1:
The recent changes of CPT policy has affected me very personally. I have been interning for a non-profit organization based in DC since Sophomore summer. This was an opportunity I really valued and worked hard to obtain. I received a return offer this summer, which eventually was delayed to fall due to uncertainty about policy change. When the new policy was published in August, I had no choice but to inform the organization of my inability to rejoin in the fall. As an international student with no work-study privilege and no financial aid, I am struggling even more without this internship. I have been in touch with Conn throughout the summer to figure out a creative way to make this work. It is frustrating because, for international students, little is in our control. It adds another barrier to securing a post-grad job in America, while we watch some of our American peers benefit from family and generational networks that we don’t have. The Deans and the school have sent us emails throughout the summer for updates and hosted panels to answer any questions. I know they are working with other NESCAC and regional schools to discuss possible, creative solutions. It is hard to stay optimistic even though I know Conn is working hard to help us through this new policy change. I am starting to consider moving out of America for job opportunities and grad school as nothing seems to be in our favor under the current administration.
Dean Patton:
What have Conn’s priorities been in managing the response to CPT and visa changes ordered by the federal government?
For decades, the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP, a division of the Department of Homeland Security) allowed institutions to authorize Curricular Practical Training (CPT) for international students as long as the internship was credit-bearing. In August, SEVP announced it would begin strictly limiting CPT authorization to internships that are a degree requirement.
As a result, all NESCAC institutions have paused CPT authorizations indefinitely, while other universities have severely restricted approval to align with these new federal standards. The announcement by the federal government specified that internships not required for degree completion must instead be authorized through Optional Practical Training (OPT). While CPT is processed internally by the college at no cost, OPT requires federal government approval and involves an associated application fee.
Our priorities are to keep our students safe, fully in compliance, and well-informed so that they do not face difficulties if they apply for immigration benefits in the future. But we also believe in the value of internships as part of the undergraduate experience at Conn which is why there is frustration throughout higher ed on this new rule.
How do you feel the student body and affected international students have responded to these changes?
Students received this news with great disappointment and understandable concern. Three students who were about to start a part-time internship this fall could not do so under CPT. One student requested approval for their internship through OPT. We deeply recognize how frustrating it is for students to lose opportunities they worked hard to secure, and our office remains available to support them.
Is Conn working with any other institutions or organizations to coordinate their response?
Yes, we have consulted with an attorney and held ongoing discussions with peer NESCAC institutions to coordinate our response. The federal government’s new rule forced us to indefinitely suspend CPT authorization, but our action aligns with all other NESCAC schools in response to the federal policy updates.
What challenges do you predict these changes will pose for international students seeking pre-professional and post-graduate opportunities?
We will need to strategize thoughtful and innovative ways to ensure our international students continue to access the experiential learning that is so crucial to developing their career skills and complementing their classroom study. While off-campus CPT is limited, students can still utilize Optional Practical Training (OPT) for non-required internships. Additionally, on-campus programs, faculty research, and internships abroad remain excellent options available to them as they build their professional experience.
What immediate guidance are we giving to students who had off-campus fall internships planned that are no longer eligible under this strict “graduation requirement” framework?
We are guiding students to evaluate whether applying for OPT is feasible, or to consider postponing off-campus internships until they can be conducted remotely from outside the U.S. without requiring CPT or OPT authorization.
How does this complicate the experience of international students who are part of/were planning on joining a pathway or center?
Pathways and Centers generally don’t have a strict requirement for a specific off-campus internship. They require a purposeful engagement in a local or international context, such as study away, an internship, or community-based learning. Because CPT is now restricted to strict degree requirements, international students in Pathways and Centers can fulfill their engagement requirements through alternative avenues such as campus-based research, community-based learning courses, or study away without compromising their visa status.
What is the number one piece of advice your office is giving to an international student right now regarding travel, documentation, and professional opportunity searching?
We communicate with our students on a regular basis in regard to any updates. In a fast-changing landscape, prompt communication is key. When dealing with post-graduation career paths, the best advice we offer is to consider multiple career options both in the U.S. and abroad. We partner closely with the Hale Center for Career Development and the Walter Commons to support and assist our students in those plans.
Any other comments the College would like on the record?
We remain firmly committed to supporting our international student community. In an evolving regulatory landscape, our priority is to ensure our students are well-informed, fully protected under federal immigration guidelines, and empowered to access meaningful academic and experiential opportunities both on campus and beyond.
Student #2:
How have recent changes to federal legislation regarding CPTs affected you academically and personally?
I spent a considerable part of the spring and summer applying for fall internships. I met with my career advisor and was repeatedly reminded by the Hale Center about the importance of having an internship by junior year. When I received an internship offer, I was excited to accept it. However, about a week before the internship was supposed to begin, I had to tell the hiring manager that I was unsure whether I would even be able to start because of the CPT changes.
Because CPT had always been a relatively straightforward process, I did not expect there to be an issue so late in the process. The Dean of International Students had not given me any explicit indication that CPT policies might change, and I was told that I could sign and accept the internship offer letter. Based on that information, I left my campus job because I had secured an internship for the fall. International students are generally not allowed to work more than 20 hours per week, so I believed I had to make that transition.
Personally, after being called to the Dean’s office and told in person that I would not receive CPT at that time, and later receiving an email that it would not be possible for the fall, I felt scared. I was about to lose income that I needed in order to afford being a student in the United States.
I was able to contact my former on-campus employer and ask to return, but I know many other students who tried to do the same did not have a campus job available to return to. For those students, the impact was even more severe.
Academically, this has limited the opportunities available to me to gain professional experience connected to my field of study. Internship experience is often treated as an important part of students’ academic and professional development, especially by junior year. Losing that opportunity so suddenly has affected how I think about my remaining time at Conn and how I will prepare for graduate school and future employment. Seeing other universities being more supportive of international students, it makes me wonder if Conn stands with us or if it is just worried about how everything can legally affect it as an institution.
What has been your experience as a recipient of communication from the College regarding these changes and what they mean? In other words, how has Conn. communicated with you and helped you work through what the changes mean for you as a student?
I felt that the College’s response time was not timely and that the lack of communication created more anxiety for international students. It seemed that, in an effort to avoid alarming students, information was not communicated until it was final. However, even a heads-up or warning would have helped students prepare. The College has communicated in advance about other policy changes that affect students, so it was difficult to understand why that did not happen in this case.
Many of my international student friends who had not directly consulted someone about CPT were unaware of the situation. They were counting on internships, especially because the Hale Center was continuing to support them in applying for internships. Many of us learned about CPT changes through communications from peer institutions and articles in college newspapers, rather than through direct communication from Conn.
Conn uses international students in its marketing and public image, but it does not always acknowledge our struggles through official communication. We are often left dependent on one office that cannot always answer all of our questions quickly, even when those questions concern our ability to work, afford school, and remain financially stable.
Part of the delay in communication from the Dean of International Students may be connected to the fact that she has many responsibilities. She is also a dean for sophomores, a professor, and responsible for Odyssey pre-orientation. I believe she does what she can, but the situation shows that more resources should be available for international students.
For example, during late August, many of us were waiting for answers and needed to respond to internship managers as soon as possible. At the time, Dean Patton was away from her office leading Odyssey, the international student orientation program. Students continued to receive automated responses saying: “Thank you for your email. I am running Odyssey, our international student orientation, on August 24 and 25. During this time, there will be a delay in my response to emails.” This made an already stressful situation worse, especially for students who needed to make immediate decisions about their jobs and finances.
Has this situation affected or changed your post-grad/future plans as a student and eventual employee?
Yes. Because I am unable to pursue internships in the same way, I have decided to focus more on research opportunities. However, this was not entirely a choice based on my academic interests; it was also a response to having fewer opportunities available to gain professional experience.
I have also had to remove or reconsider several master’s programs that I had hoped to apply to. Without internship experience, I do not feel that I will be as competitive for programs that value professional or applied experience. As a result, I have narrowed my options to programs that are more directly tailored to research.
This has changed how I imagine my future after Conn. Internships are not only professional opportunities; they can shape students’ networks, career direction, confidence, and ability to qualify for graduate programs or future jobs. Losing access to those opportunities has made me feel less prepared and less competitive, despite the effort I have put into my education and career planning.
