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Curricular Practical Training (CPT)
F-1 students must apply for permission
from the Designated School Official (DSO) in the Office of
International Student Services (OISS) before engaging in an
internship, externship, or practicum, known in immigration terms
as “curricular practical training” or “CPT” for short.
According to the U.S. Code of Federal
Regulations, Title 8, Part 214, Section 2 (f)(10):
An F-1 student may be authorized by the
DSO to participate in a curricular practical training program
that is an integral part of an established curriculum.
Curricular practical training is defined to be alternative
work/study, internship, cooperative education, or any other type
of required internship or practicum that is offered by
sponsoring employers through cooperative agreements with the
school.
Practical training may be authorized to
an F-1 student who has been lawfully enrolled on a full time
basis, in a service-approved college, university, conservatory,
or seminary for one full academic year. Exceptions to the one
academic year requirement are provided for students enrolled in
graduate studies that require immediate participation in
curricular practical training.
Students who have received one year or
more of full-time curricular practical training are ineligible
for post-completion academic training. A request for
authorization for curricular practical training must be made to
the DSO. A student may begin curricular practical training only
after receiving his or her Form I-20 with the DSO endorsement.
Read
carefully…
CPT is employment for the purpose of
gaining practical work experience in your field of study. You
are not allowed to be self-employed or to be hired as an
independent contractor. You must let your employer know that
income taxes must be withheld from your pay. If you are a
“nonresident” for taxes purposes (for the first five years in
F-1 status you may be considered a nonresident for tax purposes)
you do not have to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes.
Do not confuse “volunteer services” with
an unpaid internship. A volunteer is an individual who performs
hours of service for a public agency for charitable or
humanitarian reasons, without promise or expectation of
compensation.
Do not offer services for free if those
services are normally associated with a paid position. If you
accept an unpaid position, it must be unpaid for anyone,
regardless of citizenship or visa status.
Pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act
(a federal law which establishes the minimum wages for work
performed) the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has developed six
criteria for differentiating between an employee entitled to
minimum wage or above and a learner/trainee who may be unpaid.
The criteria for learner/trainee are:
1. The training, even though it includes
actual operations of the facilities of the employers, is similar
to that which would be given in a vocational school.
2. The training is for the benefit of
the student.
3. The student does not displace a
regular employee, but works under the close observation of a
regular employee or supervisor.
4. The employer provides the training
and derives no immediate advantage from the activities of the
student; and on occasion, the operations may actually be impeded
by the training.
5. The student is not necessarily
entitled to a job at the conclusion of the training period.
6. The employer and the student
understand that the student is not entitled to wages for the
time spent training.
How to obtain
permission for CPT
Step 1
Obtain an internship, externship or
practicum that meets one of the following criteria.
A. The CPT is required for all degree
candidates and necessary for the awarding of the degree.
B. The CPT is related to an elective
course, resulting in the awarding of academic credit primarily,
if not solely, on the basis of the training experience.
Step 2
Ask your academic advisor, program
administrator, or internship coordinator to provide the
information outlined below to your Designated School Official
(DSO). Ms. Nancy Shatzer is the Internship Coordinator at the
Career Center for Seaver College. Edwin Cahill is the DSO for
Seaver College undergraduate students. Judy Lee is the DSO for
graduate students.
1. Your name
2. Your degree program
3. Course number for which this CPT will
fulfill requirements
4. The term during which you are
registered for this course
5. The number of course credits that
will be awarded
6. Name and address of the internship
site
7. CPT start date (month/day/year) and
end date (month/day/year). If these dates do not coincide
with the term start and end dates, please explain.
8. The number of hours per week you will
work.
9. Date of expected completion of your
program
10. Payment (unpaid or paid)
Step 3
If you are getting paid, you must make
an appointment with your DSO to have your employment
authorized and printed on a new Form I-20. F-1 students who
engage in unauthorized CPT are in violation of the terms of
their visa classification and are subject to termination of
status. As a result, they may be denied future visas or
admission to the United States. Students are also responsible
for filing their tax forms to the U.S. federal and state tax
agencies before the tax deadline each year.
Step 4
Apply for a U.S. Social Security Number
(SSN) at a Social Security Administration (SSA) office off
campus. You may go to the SSA office at 11500 W. Olympic Blvd.,
Suite 300, Los Angeles, CA 90064, or find the nearest location
at http://www.ssa.gov. .
Bring your:
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Passport
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Form I-20 & Form I-94
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New Form I-20 from DSO authorizing CPT
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Not required but recommended:
Letter of offer of internship from the employer, describing
the terms of the internship, and including the employer
identification number (EIN)
Obtain a letter or receipt from the SSA
stating that you have applied for a SSN.
OISS ~ Pepperdine University ~ May
3, 2007
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