Interns Encounter Trouble With Visas

Harvard students who hoped to hop across the pond this summer to work may find themselves staying closer to home due to unresolved visa negotiations between the United States and the United Kingdom.

The U.K. Border Agency recently unveiled a new youth mobility scheme that applies to individuals between the ages of 18 and 31 who would like to “experience life in the United Kingdom.”

In order to apply for a visa, individuals must have a valid national passport from a country taking part in the youth mobility scheme.

But because the U.S. has not yet signed the agreement, several internships sponsored by the Institute of Politics and the Center for European Studies are now only available to students with passports from the European Union, Australia, Canada, Japan, or New Zealand.

The visa troubles have already impacted students’ summer plans.

Anna Raginskaya ’11 spent last summer as an intern at Sotheby’s Auction House in London.

At the end of her internship, she was offered an unpaid position for the following summer, an opportunity she had to decline recently due to work permit complications.

“It was a really painful situation,” Raginskaya said. “There is so much value to interacting with different people and different business practices.”

According to U.S. State Department spokesman Robert A. McInturff, student work permits are processed through the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. McInturff said that complications regarding the youth mobility program fall under the jurisdiction of the Bureau.

Christopher W. Reid, the interim CES Student Programs Coordinator, said that he has been in constant contact with both the State Department and the Harvard Club of the United Kingdom. According to Reid, the lack of agreement has been frustrating for internship coordination.

“They’ve been saying that they are in negotiation for three months,” Reid said.

In addition to problems with work permits, CES also eliminated a number of U.K. internships due to the economic downturn. Reid said that some employers were unable to sponsor summer interns this year.

Though visa negotiations began before the financial crisis, Robin E. Mount, the Director of the Office of Career Services, said that talks may have been elongated by the dire financial situation.

“It’s a very tough time and you’re seeing a lot of protectionism taking place between countries,” Mount said.

The U.K. has historically been one of the most popular summer destinations for Harvard students, according to Mount.

While Raginskaya ultimately secured an internship at Sotheby’s New York office, other students have been unable to find such ready alternatives.

Steven C. Rizoli ’11 had made preliminary arrangements for a summer job in England and now planned to apply for a grant through the Weissman International Internship Program.

“I’m a serious Anglophile,” Rizoli said. “I’m really considering working or living in England for a time after graduation.”

—Staff writer Courtney P. Yadoo can be reached at cyadoo@fas.harvard.edu.