Limited Hours During Holidays

International Scholar Services office will be closed in observance of Thanksgiving beginning 5 pm Wednesday, November 27, 2024 and re-opening 8 am Monday, December 2, 2024. Telephone calls during this time will be routed to voicemail, and regular emails to individual team members, to PISA@Purdue.edu and to intlscholars@purdue.edu will not be responded to; we will respond to emails and voice messages upon our return to the office. If this is an emergency and you require immediate assistance, please see our instructions on our website here.

International Scholar Services

What We Do

International Scholar Services encompasses two units-

  • International Scholar Services (immigration counseling), and
  • Purdue International Scholar Assistance (PISA) (administrative support)

International Scholar Services supports the "Purdue-sponsored" employment-based immigration needs of Purdue university and our affiliate organizations and institutions -

  • The colleges, departments, schools, and administrative units who seek to host or hire international workers or researchers, and
  • The international faculty and other instructors, staff, postdoctoral and other researchers, and visiting scholars, as well as the international individuals themselves

We provide consistent, transparent, proactive and comprehensive guidance "from there to here" - to support our internationals throughout their transition to, and stay at Purdue, as well as the diverse research, academic and other initiatives at Purdue that seek their contributions. 

Who We Support

International Scholar Services supports the immigration needs of

  • Purdue's international faculty, staff, postdocs and scholars at our West Lafayette campus
  • Purdue Northwest's international faculty at our northwest (Hammond and Westville) campuses
  • Purdue Research Foundation
  • Purdue Applied Research Institute
  • Purdue University's Indianapolis campus
  • The Purdue Polytechnic High School in Indianapolis
Our Customers and Partners

International Scholar Services collaborates and engages with almost every office and every aspect of the Purdue organization. Our customers and campus partners include-

  • Current and incoming international faculty, staff, postdocs and scholars, and their accompanying family
  • Their hosts and supervisors
  • Their academic or administrative units
  • Stakeholder offices on campus whose responsibilities intersect with our immigration services, including but not limited to
    • International Student Services
    • Compensation
    • Talent Acquisition
    • Office of Institutional Equity
    • Office of the Provost
  • Partner offices on campus whose responsibilities include the same international population we support
    • Dual Careers
    • Business Offices
    • Export Control Office

 

 

Our Leadership

Photo of Amanda Thompson

Amanda Thompson

Director, International Scholar Services
Amanda received her BA in English from the University of Alberta (1988) and her LLB from the University of British Columba (1991). She practiced law briefly in Canada before moving to the US in 1994 (first as a TN status and then in H-1B), and has been licensed in the US as an attorney since 1998. Amanda has worked for one of the largest law firms in the US, but also has run her own solo law practice; additionally, she managed international services at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory for more than six years. Amanda authored two legal treatises, and, until 2012, updated them biannually. She has three grown children, two dogs, and three citizenships.
Photo of Moira Haehl

Moira Haehl

Assistant Director, International Scholar Services

Moira has been part of the ISS scholar team since March 2019 and is currently the Assistant Director. She has a Chemical Engineering degree from Vanderbilt University and started her career working in Research and Development at Eli Lilly and Company.  Moira has worked in several regulatory positions prior to joining Purdue. 

Moira was born in Scotland and moved to the US when she was in high school.  In her free time, she loves to travel, explore new places, go to sporting events, and spend time with her four adult children and dogs.

Photo of Deborah Lewis

Deborah Lewis

Administrative Operations Coordinator
Debbie has been an employee of Purdue University for more than seven years and a West Lafayette resident for more than thirty years. She has a Bachelor of Science degree from Illinois State University, and joined the International Scholar team in early 2023.
Debbie enjoys spending time reading, working on 1000-piece puzzles, eating out at all the new area restaurants and visiting her son (a Purdue grad) in Fort Wayne and her daughter (an IU grad) in downtown Indianapolis.