We are here for you
If you are leaving a job at USC or supporting someone as they do, resources are available to help navigate this transition. This page outlines important next steps, deadlines, and information about your benefits, pay, and access to university services.
Complete these important tasks and be aware of key deadlines.
Review benefits, pay, and university services that may be affected by your departure.
Find support resources and key contacts for questions after leaving USC.
Leaving USC checklist
Use this checklist to complete important tasks and meet key deadlines when leaving USC.
Please note: USC medical, dental, and vision coverage ends on the last day of the month in which your employment ends.
Right away
Retirement plan: Contact your retirement provider to discuss account options and any outstanding loans.
Tuition benefits: Review how leaving USC may impact your Tuition Assistance Benefit (TAB).
Final paycheck: Your HR Partner will coordinate timing and delivery of your final paycheck. Contact your departmental payroll representative to review final paycheck details and deductions.
Parking: Cancel your parking permit or public transit pass through USC Transportation.
University property: Coordinate with your department administrator or HR Partner to return university property, including laptops, keys, and ID cards.
Unemployment insurance: If you have been laid off, you may qualify for unemployment benefits.
Workers’ Compensation, Disability, and Leave of Absence: If either of these are active when your employment with USC ends, contact the HR Service Center for guidance.
Within 31 days after your last day of employment at USC
Voluntary insurance (MetLife): Watch out for communication from MetLife regarding continued coverage under your life/AD&D and voluntary insurance plan.
Within 60 days after your last day of employment at USC
Health coverage: Decide whether to continue health insurance through COBRA, an ACA marketplace plan, or Medicare.
- You may also continue your Health Care Flexible Spending Account through COBRA if you have remaining funds.
- If you are over age 65 and Medicare-eligible, contact Retirement Administration via uschr@usc.edu or schedule a Virtual Retirement Navigation Meeting.
By the end of the calendar year
Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account: You have until the end of the year to incur eligible dependent care expenses using your remaining balance.
Offboarding essentials
Learn what to expect and what actions you may need to take after leaving USC.
Benefits
Health
USC medical, dental, and vision coverage ends on the last day of the month in which your employment ends.
You may be eligible to continue health coverage for yourself and your dependents through the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) or an Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace plan.
COBRA
COBRA allows eligible employees and dependents to continue health benefits for up to 18 months after qualifying events such as job loss or reduced work hours. Some HMO participants may qualify for an additional 18 months of COBRA under Cal COBRA AB1401.
Important information
- COBRA premiums include the full cost of coverage (as USC does not contribute toward COBRA costs) plus a 2% administrative fee.
- Employee wellness discounts (like the health assessment credit) no longer apply.
HealthEquity, USC’s COBRA administrator, will mail enrollment information to the address listed in Workday.
Enrollment deadlines
- You must enroll within 60 days of the mailing date or your last day of employment, whichever is later.
- Coverage is not active until enrollment and payment are completed.
- Once payment is processed, coverage is retroactive to your original loss-of-coverage date.
Enroll online through HealthEquity at mybenefits.wageworks.com.
ACA marketplace plans
If COBRA is not the right option for you, visit healthcare.gov or call 800-318-2596 to review ACA marketplace plans. Free consultation is available through Next Level planning.
If you voluntarily cancel COBRA, you cannot enroll in an ACA marketplace plan until your COBRA coverage ends or until the next marketplace open enrollment period, unless you are still within 60 days of losing your employer-sponsored coverage.
Medicare
Those over the age of 65 are generally encouraged to enroll in Medicare. Medicare has specific enrollment deadlines, which, if missed, result in lifetime penalties. If you need the Employer Verification of Coverage (form CMS-L564) completed for your application to a Special Enrollment Period, please contact the HR Service Center. Dependents who are not Medicare-eligible may still qualify for COBRA.
Flexible Spending Accounts
- Your FSA card is deactivated after your last day of employment.
- You have until the end of the month following the last day of your employment to incur services by paying out of pocket and submitting a claim to HealthEquity. Expenses incurred after your card has been deactivated must be submitted directly through the HealthEquity website.
- Some individuals may be eligible to continue their Health Care FSA through COBRA (if eligible).
- Claims for the prior year must be submitted by March 31.
- Any unclaimed expenses are forfeited.
You may submit eligible dependent care expenses incurred through the end of the calendar year in which your employment with USC ends.
- Claims for the previous year must be submitted by March 31.
- Reimbursements are limited to your remaining account balance.
- Any unclaimed expenses are forfeited.
Retirement plans
Retirement contributions and university matching contributions will be deducted from your final paycheck. After leaving USC, you may leave funds in your USC retirement account, roll over funds, or withdraw funds (subject to plan terms). Contact TIAA, Vanguard, or Fidelity directly for free personal consultations.
Supplemental contributions are not deducted automatically. Contact USC Retirement Plan Administration at 213-821-8100 or rpadmin@usc.edu before your final check is prepared for a calculation of how much, if any, you are eligible to contribute.
Contact your retirement provider regarding options and repayment of any outstanding loans.
If you have an SSRP (USC Support Staff Retirement Plan) Benefit and would like more information on collecting this benefit, please email uschr@usc.edu to begin the process.
Retirement contributions will be deducted from your final paycheck. Contact Fidelity at 800-343-0860 regarding your options and repayment of any outstanding loans.
If the present value of your benefit is less than $5,000 when you leave, you will need to take action regarding your benefit. If the value is over $5,000, you cannot receive payment or roll over the benefit. Your retirement benefit will be available to you upon retirement age. Contact the HR Service Center for assistance.
Family and tuition benefits
The university subsidy for USC Child Care Programs ends on the last day of the month in which your employment ends. Please provide 30 days’ notice to your child care administrative office. For more information, call the UPC office at 213-821-9571 or the HSC office at 323-405-6400.
Tuition benefit eligibility after leaving USC depends on your separation type:
- Employees who resign or are terminated with cause during a semester while receiving tuition assistance for themselves or dependents will receive a prorated bill for the remainder of the semester.
- Employees laid off with severance while receiving tuition assistance for themselves or dependents may continue to use the tuition assistance benefit until the end of the academic year in which their employment ends.
- Employees involuntarily terminated without cause while receiving tuition assistance for themselves or dependents may continue to use the tuition assistance benefit through the end of the semester in which their employment ends.
Employees hired before July 1, 2011, who have accrued 15 years of eligible service before their last day of employment, should contact the HR Service Center to request their 15-year service letter and information on post-employment benefits for their dependent children.
Consulting a tax professional is recommended, as continued use of tuition benefits may have tax implications. Tax treatment is determined at the start of each semester, so your tax status will change at the beginning of the semester after your employment ends.
Other benefits
MetLife Legal Plan participants may enroll in portable coverage within 30 days of their last day of employment. Call 833-214-4175 to apply. Coverage is prepaid for 12 months in a lump sum. Plan details remain the same as those for active employees. Visit MetLife’s dedicated legal plans website for details.
Coverage ends on the last day of the month in which your employment ends, provided premiums have been paid. MetLife will contact participants regarding continuation options, including conversion and portability. Premiums may be higher than those paid by active employees.
Participants must notify MetLife when their employment with USC ends. Policies continue at the same rate initially, but the group discount will no longer apply at renewal. Contact MetLife at 866-937-7387 to begin this process.
If you are receiving workers’ compensation or disability benefits when your employment with USC ends, your claim or benefit payments may continue depending on the type of benefit, your individual claim status, and the applicable program or plan rules.
Before your separation date, please contact the HR Service Center for guidance about your specific situation.
Pay-related information
Your HR Partner will coordinate timing and delivery of your final paycheck.
Please work with your departmental payroll representative to review final paycheck details and deductions. For instructions on how to find your departmental payroll representative(s), please review these step-by-step instructions.
Discuss unused vacation days with your manager and HR Partner to ensure they’re accurately reflected in Workday for payment. You will receive a payout for any accrued, unused vacation days in your final check.
Make arrangements to continue payments after leaving USC for deductions such as USC Credit Union loans, School of Dentistry payment plans, Fidelity or Vanguard retirement loans, and ticket office purchases.
Contributions for current benefits, including retirement contributions, will be deducted from your paycheck. Parking citations, USCard and University Club card charges, wage assignments, applicable taxable tuition assistance benefits, and other outstanding deductions may be taken from your final paycheck.
All benefits-eligible staff employees are eligible for severance benefits. Excluded are per diems, resource employees, temporary employees, faculty, those claiming student status (including teaching and research assistants), and staff employees who were employed for a specific period of time only (e.g., in a fixed term position or a contract, grant and/or gift funded position).
Refer to the Layoffs and Reorganizations Policy for more details (USC NetID login required). If you can no longer access the policy or have any additional questions, contact your HR Partner or the HR Service Center.
University-related logistics
Contact USC Transportation to cancel your parking payroll deduction. Cancel your parking permit by completing the online cancellation form. The form is USC Shibboleth protected; if you can no longer access it, please email auxtrans@usc.edu.
Coordinate with your department administrator or HR Partner to return all university property, including laptops, keys, ID cards, etc., by your last day. Turn in your USCard to your department or to USCard Services.
Submit all outstanding expenses in Concur before your last day of employment. You are responsible for all personal expenses and late fees due to late submissions. If you have questions related to any expense reports, please contact your HR Partner.
Review the terms of any loan or repayment agreement you have with the appropriate university office. Any other amounts owed to the university that are not outlined in a specific agreement should be paid on or before your last day of employment.
Gold Card Services are for those who are 55 years of age or older, have completed at least 10 years of benefits-eligible service, and leave the university in good standing. Visit the USC Gold Card webpage to learn more about how to begin the application process.
Personal information
Former employees retain read-only access to Workday (which includes the ability to download documents) through June 30 of the calendar year after leaving USC. After that date, access will expire, so be sure to download paystubs or employment documents before access ends.
After your employment ends, your login information changes:
URL: https://wd5.myworkday.com/wday/authgwy/usc/login.htmld?redirect=n
Username: 7-digit Employee ID
Password: Usc$Trojan[last four of SSN]
Multi-factor authentication is required using:
- Microsoft Authenticator, or
- A temporary code sent to the email on file
Review the Workday direct login using multi-factor authentication Quick Reference Guide for instructions.
If you have issues logging in, contact ITS at 213-764-4952 or itsworkdayfinancehelp@usc.edu.
Past copies of W-2s are available through ADP, if you are registered to access online versions of your W-2. Details on this and other tax documents can be found on the University Comptroller’s site and questions can be directed to Payroll Services at payroll@usc.edu.
Update your mailing address in Workday before access expires or contact the HR Service Center. To update your address with your retirement provider, contact the provider directly.
Employment verification is available through The Work Number. You will need your Social Security Number and USC’s employer code (11496). For more information, visit our Employment Verification Questions webpage.
Unemployment
Unemployment insurance provides temporary financial assistance to eligible workers who lose their jobs through no fault of their own.
To qualify, you must:
- Be unemployed or working less than full-time
- Be ready and looking for work; and
- Have worked in the last 18 months.
Apply through the California Employment Development Department (EDD). Filing before your last day of employment may result in delays in processing.
You will be required to provide your employment information, as well as USC’s employer information, which can be found on your W-2 or payslips.
If you reside outside California, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s CareerOneStop to access unemployment insurance information for your state.
Transition support
For questions about your offboarding experience, contact your HR Partner.
For benefits and perks questions, contact the HR Service Center.