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F-1 visa holders have limited employment
opportunities while studying in the United
States. Four employment options for F-1
visa holders are: on-campus employment,
curricular practical training, optional
practical training, and severe economic
hardship. For detailed information on each
of these options, please click on the links
below.
All F-1 visa students are permitted by USCIS to work on campus up to 20 hours per week during the academic year, and no more than 40 hours per week during break periods. U.S. law requires all employees to prove their eligibility to work.
In order to work on campus at the California Institute of Integral Studies, you must apply for work authorization from the Financial Aid Office. The International Students Office provides the application form and guidance through the process.
The Financial Aid Office examines each applicant's financial need in order to determine the amount of work authorization that may be granted. If you are granted work authorization, you will be eligible to earn a pre-determined amount of money in a given school year. This system is similar to the work-study program that American students face when attempting to find work on-campus.
Download
Application for Work Authorization
Curricular Practical Training (CPT) is
defined to be "alternate work/study, internship,
cooperative education, or any other type
of required internship or practicum which
is offered by sponsoring employers through
cooperative agreements with the school."
It must be an integral part of an established
curriculum and requires verification by
the international student advisor.
General Requirements
1. CPT is available to F-1 student visa
holders prior to completion of their studies
during the regular academic year.
2. Employment must be temporary and directly
related to the student's field of study.
3. Students must have been in full-time
status for at least one full academic
year and be in good academic standing.
4. Students who participate in 12 months
or more of full-time CPT are ineligible
for optional practical training.
5. In order for work to be considered
permissible under CPT, it must be an integral
part of your degree requirement.
6. Employment authorization is employer
specific and requires an offer of employment.
The Application Procedure
In order to receive approval for CPT you
must submit the following to the international
student advisor:
1. A Letter from your Proposed Employer:
Your proposed employer should prepare
a letter on company letterhead explaining
the type of work you will be engaged in
and the number of hours per week you will
be expected to work. This letter should
also state the job location and dates
of employment.
2. Curricular Practical Training Application:
You should complete section one of
this form. Section two must be completed
by your faculty advisor.
Contact Jody O’Connor, International Student Advisor, for application procedure and further information at joconnor@ciis.edu.
New OPT Rules
April 10, 2008
Updates/Changes to Optional Practical Training (OPT)
Effective April 8, 2008
Effective April 8, 2008, the Department of Homeland Security published new rules that directly impact all F-1 students who will apply for Optional Practical Training (OPT), have an application pending for OPT, or are currently engaged in OPT. (For the published government text click here.)
Rules That Affect CIIS Students
OPT Application Process and Timeline
The new rules allow all qualified F-1 students to apply for 12 months of OPT up to 90 days prior to their program end date and within 60 days after their program end date. In addition, OPT applications must be submitted to USCIS within 30 days of receiving an OPT I-20 from CIIS.
Effective May 8th, 2008, students applying for OPT must use the USCIS employment authorization application Form I-765 version dated 04/08/2008. Forms are available at http://www.uscis.gov. Please note that some of the instructions on this new version have changed:
- Students applying for pre-completion OPT (question 16) must use the eligibility code (c)(3)(A).
- Students applying for the 12-month post-completion OPT (question 16) must use the eligibility code (c)(3)(B).
Maintaining Status on OPT
All students are required to report to the International Student Advisor via email or in person within 10 days any changes to the following information:
• Name
• Residential address
• Phone and email address
• Employer name
• Employer address
• Employment status
For regular post-completion OPT, the employment does NOT have to paid employment. Therefore, a student who is self-employed (ex. for performance majors with regular “gigs”), interning or volunteering in a position directly related to the academic field would be considered “employed” for the purposes of OPT employment.
Periods of Unemployment
Students authorized for 12 months of OPT put their F-1 status in jeopardy if they are unemployed for more than 90 days cumulative.
H-1B Cap-Gap Extension of Status and Employment
Previously, students who were approved for an H-1B effective October 1st and had an EAD card that expired prior to the H-1B start date had to stop working and leave the country until the H-1B start date arrived. The new rule remedies this situation by automatically extending the duration of valid F-1 status and OPT employment authorization for students with H-1B petitions and change of status requests for an H-1B start date for the next October 1st. For 2008, this will apply to F-1 OPT students who had H-1B applications filed by their employer between April 1, 2008 and April 7, 2008. Please note the following:
- The extension of employment authorization automatically ends if the petition is denied, canceled, or revoked by USCIS. Effective on the date of such notification by USCIS, the student’s 60-day grace period to leave the country, transfer programs, or file for a change of status begins.
- Travel abroad and re-entry to the U.S. during this automatic extension period may not be possible.
OPT Updates That Do Not Apply to CIIS Students
17-Month Post-Completion OPT Extension for “STEM”
Students Under the new rules, recipients of U.S. Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctoral degrees in certain STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) fields, are eligible for a one-time, 17-month extension of post-completion OPT (for a total eligibility of up to 29 months). To be eligible for the 17-month extension, the following conditions must be met:
- The student must be authorized for OPT at the time of the extension application and working in a job related to his or her field of study.
- The 17-month extension is limited to students who have completed certain science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) degrees.
- At the time of application for the OPT extension, the student’s employer must be registered with and participating in the USCIS E-Verify employment verification program.
- Employers must indicate their E-Verify Identification Number on the I-765
- Employers must agree to notify the Berkeley International Office within 48 hours of a student’s employment termination
DHS has provided the following additional guidance on the 17-month OPT extension:
- Students eligible for the 17-month extension must request the extension recommendation from the International Student Advisor.
- The student will file the extension request with form I-765, application fee, and supporting documents. The eligibility code for the 17-month extension on the I-765 question 16 is (c)(3)(c).
- Applications must be received by the USCIS prior to the student’s current OPT end date.
- While the 17-month extension application is pending, the 12 month OPT is automatically extended for 180 days or until the I-765 is adjudicated, whichever comes earlier.
- The start date on the 17-month extension OPT card will be the day after the 12-month OPT expires.
Periods of Unemployment
Students authorized for 29 months of OPT in total put their F-1 status in jeopardy if they are unemployed for more than 120 days cumulative.
Maintaining Status
For the 17-month STEM extension, employment must be traditional paid employment.
F-1 students may seek off-campus employment
in the event of severe economic hardship
caused by unforeseen circumstances beyond
the student's control.
These circumstances include:
• Loss of financial aid or on-campus
employment without fault on part of the
student
• Substantial fluctuations in the
value of the currency or exchange rate
• Inordinate increases in tuition
and/or living costs
• Unexpected changes in the financial
condition of the student's sources of
support, medical bills, or other substantial
and unexpected expenses
In order to apply, students must have been
in F-1 status for one full academic year,
be in good academic standing, and enrolled
in a full course of study.
The application procedure: You should
make an appointment with the international
student advisor and bring with you the following
items:
• Form I-765, the Application for
Employment Authorization
• Write a check in the order of "USCIS"
in the amount of the fee required for
Form I-765
• Supporting materials such as affidavits
which further detail the unforeseen
circumstances
Check Your Application Status: by calling
1-800-375-5283 or online.
You will need to have your 13-character
application receipt number. It is a 10 digit
number preceded by the letters WAC. |
