OPT stands for Optional Practical Training and is a 12-month temporary employment authorization that provides an opportunity for F-1 students to apply knowledge they acquired in their programs to work experience in their major field. OPT job employment must be related to the students program of study and cannot exceed 12 months. Students can participate in OPT one time at each academic level (associate, bachelors, masters or doctorate).

Please apply early. You can apply as early as 90 days before your program end date. You don’t have to wait for a job offer. You don’t need a job offer to apply for OPT. You’ll need a job once you are approved for OPT so we recommend if you don’t have employment when you apply you begin, in earnest, seeking employment after you apply. Allow three months for processing by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), plus additional time for gathering your documents, meeting with a DSO and mailing to USCIS. You cannot work until you receive OPT approval.

You may submit your application to USCIS as early as 90 days before your program end date and up to 60 days after your program end date (Your program end date is the last day of your final semester, including final exams week, according to the academic calendar). Please note that your OPT application must arrive at the USCIS Service Center within 30 days of the OPT I-20 issue date or the request will be denied. We strongly encourage you to apply for OPT three months prior to your program end date. Although USCIS will accept your application up to 60 days after your program end date, you cannot begin work until the application is approved. A delayed application may result in delayed work authorization and/or loss of full OPT eligibility (12 months) due to the three-month processing time by USCIS.

Please read the following instructions carefully. Although we provide information, the OPT application is your application. We don’t approve the application or have the authority to influence the process. If there’s a request for information or to correct a problem, we’ll notify you of the request but it’s your responsibility to respond. Please note that if you choose to travel it could be difficult to respond to requests from USCIS about your application.

USCIS will send you a receipt notice (I-797 Notice of Action) confirming receipt of your OPT application, assigning a “receipt date” and assigning a case number. Carefully review the notice to make sure your name is spelled correctly. If it’s not, contact your DSO immediately.

Once you have received your receipt notice, you can track the status of your individual case using the case status search feature of the USCIS website. You may use the case number on your receipt notice to check the status of your application online. It’s normal for your case status to say “initial review” for most of the two- to three-month processing period.

USCIS will approve or deny your OPT. If approved, they’ll mail your Employment Authorization Document (EAD) to you. It takes on average three to five months for USCIS to process an OPT request. You may not begin employment until USCIS approves the OPT application and you’ve received your EAD. Authorized OPT dates will be on your EAD.

Warning: You must report your practical training/employment to SEVP using the SEVP Portal. Students will receive an email from SEVP on the first day of their OPT authorized work period with information on how to access the SEVP Portal. It’s the responsibility of the student to enter their employer information into this government system. Students who don’t report their employer information will have their OPT authorization and F-1 status terminated by SEVP after 90 days of unemployment. Students are notified about the Portal on the first day of OPT authorized work as listed on their EAD card. A terminated SEVIS record cancels OPT authorization and requires a student to leave the U.S.

You’re required to check in with COA DSO every six months. This is recorded in SEVIS and is a federal government regulation. Upon receiving your OPT Student Information Form, a COA DSO will enter your employment information into SEVIS. We’re required to complete that step twice: once at the start of your OPT and once at the six-month mark. You must check your COA email during your OPT for correspondence from a DSO. You cannot be unemployed more than 90 days — at 91 days your OPT is terminated along with your record in SEVIS.

Workshops are offered each semester roughly three and a half months before graduation. Check your email for information about OPT workshops.

Please bring the following items:

• A completed and signed I-765 (paper version). Students wishing to complete the online I-765 can do so during their DSO meeting
• A copy of your passport, visa or I-797A form
• A copy of your I-94
• Two 2-inch x 2-inch passport photos taken within 30 days
• Copies of past EAD cards, if applicable
• A check or money order to U.S. Department of Homeland Security for $410

Request a meeting with a DSO. During your OPT meeting, your DSO will create and sign an OPT I-20. Students will include the signed OPT I-20 with their OPT submission.

If you don’t have employment confirmed for your OPT then begin seeking employment opportunities. After you receive your 797C receipt form, please email a scanned copy to your DSO. Once approved (or denied) for OPT, the student will need to bring their DSO a copy of their I-797A approval form and EAD card. Students will need to enter their employment information into the SEVP Portal.