International Student & Scholar Services (ISSS) Is pleased to partner with the Career Center to bring you a very special event featuring international alumni. Read on to learn more about the event and our amazing group of panelists.
2025 Global Spartan Month Fair
Each March, we celebrate the benefits of international education and cultural exchange through a series of events we call Global Spartan Month (GSM). There are many ways to participate in GSM, from attending events that get you to make connections with people from around the world, to learning more about opportunities to study in another country, to participating in workshops that will help you broaden your global mindset. Our biggest event is our GSM Fair.
Interview Waiver- Update
Effective February18, 2025, the Department of State has revised the visa interview waiver policy, reversing the prior policy update that went into effect on December 21, 2023. You can read more details about the new policy here. You can also refer to NAFSA’s webpage, which provides more in-depth details regarding this change. Please note that this new policy may impact visa application wait times, so please make certain to check information on the websites of embassies and consulates for the most up to date process and wait times for visa renewals.
Spring 2025 ISSS Events So Far…
It’s close to being a month since the Spring 2025 semester has started! (that’s crazy!) ISSS has had many events in this short amount of time (about 30)! We had our Global Spartan Welcome for the new incoming international students and Campus Tours lead by our Global Leaders in the few weeks ahead of the spring semester starting, then once the semester started we had our staple International Welcome and Grad Panel Networking events just to name a few. Below are some of the events that we wanted to highlight. We will have many more events during the semester so keep a lookout on our Instagram page (@sjsuinternational) and our events webpage for all of our upcoming events!! March is Global Spartan Month where there will be many different kinds of events, a fair and many opportunities to connect with fellow Global Spartans!
International Grad Panel & Networking
For this event we had around 62 attendees! They were able to listen to a group of international graduate students share about their experiences here at SJSU and share any work experience they may have had or experiences searching for a job. Our panelists this year were Suhaa Ahmed an Urban Planning major from India, Ambarish Govindarajulu Kaliamurthi a Computer Engineering major from India, Bokyung Kang a Counseling & Guidance major from Korea, and Dimple Mulchandani a Biomedical Engineering major from India. After the panel, students were able to mingle, network and speak with staff from the Career Center. 
International Welcome
At the start of the semesters, we host an International Welcome event to welcome in new and returning international students. This semester’s theme was Back to Childhood. About 60 students were able to join us in playing throwback games from childhood, connect with other students and also learn about other cultures! Students had fun playing Passing the Pillow (Hot Potato), Head Shoulders Knees and Toes, and Rochambeau Train! Special shout out to the committee leads: Sanya Mandhyan, Piero Miranda and Dimple Mulchandani! 
Global Connections: Kick Off 
Global Connections is a weekly meetup where each week we focus on a different theme. Students can come to connect with people from around the world, explore cultural topics, and learn tips for improving your overall well being. It is open to all students. In Spring 2025 we’ll meet every Monday from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. (PT). Please refer to the schedule on our webpage for all the topics and locations!. Everyone is welcome! For our first Global Connections of the Spring 2025 semester we had a Kick Off event where we had a large turn out! We were able to have meaningful conversations, play games, eat some snacks. Our next Global Connections will be focusing on Fun & Games on Feb 17, Come game with us! 
Global Leader Chats
Our Global Leader team facilitated chats that covered different topics from tours to advice. This semester we’ve had Global Leader Chats with topics that included, Making Friends & Getting Involved, Time Management, and Study & Job Search Tips. Each chat has had great turn out and great conversions! Our last 2 Chats (Time Management, and Study & Job Search Tips) will happen on Feb 19 and Feb 24 respectively so you still have time to join and experience a Global Leader Chat!
Executive Order to Combat Anti-Semitism
The Trump administration issued a new executive order on January 29, 2025 to combat anti-semitism. The directive asks universities to monitor students and employees who take part in pro-Palestinian protests. For international students and scholars, any such activity could lead to their deportation from the U.S., as mandated by the White House.