On June 4, Dr. James DeVita, assistant vice president for academic partnerships and high-impact experiences, and Christine Routzahn, director of the Career Center, were featured in the Chronicle of Higher Education’s “The Edge” newsletter, which included an article on the impact of federal cuts on the job market in Maryland:
“Christine Routzahn, director of the Career Center at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, noted that destinations for UMBC students have long included the alphabet soup of federal agencies. ‘We have astounding relationships with NSA, FDA, CIA, you name it," she said. Even though the university’s spring career fair, in early February, had 13 cancellations within two days, she expects the federal sector to continue to be an important destination for graduates.
The university’s status as a magnet for international students, particularly at the master’s-degree level, is cause for concern, said James DeVita, UMBC’s assistant vice president for academic partnerships and high-impact experiences. ‘Our international students are maybe one of the groups that are kind of taking it the hardest, probably because it’s not just one factor but the confluence of factors.’ One such factor is the general scrutiny on international students, but a bigger part of the stress may come from students’ need to find optional practical training as part of their F-1 visa, a program that one of President Trump’s nominees has said he wants to end.
UMBC is trying to emphasize its strengths to help students generate workplace opportunities. The university’s data shows that work experience before graduation has been key to success. ‘Roughly 50 percent have accepted opportunities where they interned or worked while there were students, and that has been consistent year after year,” said Routzahn. The university plans to increase the work-based learning opportunities students have as undergraduates and graduates.’”
UMBC offers services and opportunities that displaced federal workers can access for support. In addition, the UMBC Alumni Engagement and Career Center offices offer several resources specifically for alumni and the UMBC community. More information is available for displaced federal workers and beyond on UMBC’s Information and Resources Related to 2025 Federal Orders and Actions website.