{"id":204,"date":"2020-06-01T21:27:03","date_gmt":"2020-06-01T21:27:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/offices.vassar.edu\/internationalservices\/?page_id=204"},"modified":"2024-09-05T16:33:20","modified_gmt":"2024-09-05T16:33:20","slug":"curricular-practical-training","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/offices.vassar.edu\/international-services\/employment\/f-1-students\/off-campus-employment\/curricular-practical-training\/","title":{"rendered":"Curricular Practical Training (CPT)"},"content":{"rendered":"<!-- Inserted by Dropdownizer plugin. Forces video embeds contained in dropdowns to have a size --><style>.dropdownizer__dropdown iframe { width: 100% !important; height: 100% !important; }<\/style>\n<p>CPT is a benefit that allows F-1 students to accept off-campus employment\/internships in connection with the Vassar curriculum.&nbsp;CPT must be directly related to your major field of study.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Basics<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>CPT is available to F-1 students.<\/li><li>The earliest that an F-1 student can access CPT is the summer after their first academic year.<\/li><li>CPT must be directly related to your major field of study.<\/li><li>CPT is available part time (up to 20 hours per week) during the academic year, and full time during academic breaks.<\/li><li>CPT is a benefit available as a function of OIS and the Office of Community Engaged Learning.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Applying for CPT<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>1. Timing<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Unlike OPT, there are no external deadlines.<\/li><li>CPT is mostly used for summer internships.&nbsp;The key internal deadline is that you have to register with the Office of Community Engaged Learning (OCEL) by the end of May.<\/li><li>Our recommendation is to reach out to OIS as soon as you land a position, and we will walk you through the steps.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>2. How to Apply<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The first step is to land an internship or other form of off-campus employment.&nbsp;The employment must directly relate to your major field of study.<\/li><li>For summer employment, arrange to get credit for your employment.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>3. Make an appointment with the Office of Community Engaged Learning before the end of the semester.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>4. Follow the&nbsp;<a href=\"\/community-engaged-learning\/overview\/\">OCEL process<\/a>&nbsp;for arranging for summer credit<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>5. Complete their forms as required. Send via email to OIS a letter of employment, which must:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>be on official company letterhead<\/li><li>include a specific start date and a specific end date<\/li><li>include the complete street address where your work will be performed<\/li><li>have the number of hours per week you will work<\/li><li>describe what it is you will be doing<\/li><li>be signed and dated by your employer<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>6. Once we in OIS have received confirmation from the OCEL office along with your employment letter, we will issue a new I-20 authorizing CPT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>7. For employment outside of the summer make an appointment with the Office of Engaged Learning to explore what may be possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">CPT FAQs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Eligibility<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Can I take a semester off and do CPT?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>No, you cannot do CPT (or OPT) during a leave of absence.&nbsp;You need to be a full-time registered student in order to be able to apply for CPT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Can I do CPT during my first year?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The earliest you can do CPT is the summer following your first year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Does the use of CPT impact my eligibility for OPT?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It technically could, but it is very unlikely.&nbsp;You would need to amass 12 months of&nbsp;full-time&nbsp;CPT to become ineligible for OPT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Do I need a job offer to apply for CPT?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Yes.&nbsp;Unlike OPT, CPT is job-specific.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Is there an application fee?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>No.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>How many hours per week can I do CPT?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>CPT + any other employment, including on-campus, cannot exceed 20 hours per week during the academic year.<\/li><li>There is no restriction on hours during academic break periods.&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Applying for CPT<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What is the latest in the spring semester that I can apply for CPT for the summer?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>We recommend you apply for CPT by the end of April.<\/li><li>The one fixed deadline is that the Office for Community Engaged Learning requires you to register for summer work by the end of May.<\/li><li>Note also that it can be difficult to arrange for faculty sponsors beyond the end of classes.&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>How do I apply for CPT?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>See section on applying for CPT, above.<\/li><li>Reach out to OIS if you have any additional questions!<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>How do I know if my CPT has been approved?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>You will receive a new CPT I-20: we will notify you when it is ready to be picked up.<\/li><li>Your CPT authorization will appear on Page 2 of the I-20.&nbsp;If your employer wants proof of authorization, this is what you will show to them.<\/li><\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>CPT is a benefit that allows F-1 students to accept off-campus employment\/internships in connection with the Vassar curriculum.&nbsp;CPT must be directly related to your major field of study. The Basics CPT is available to F-1 students. The earliest that an F-1 student can access CPT is the summer after their first academic year. CPT must [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":201,"menu_order":1,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-204","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/offices.vassar.edu\/international-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/204","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/offices.vassar.edu\/international-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/offices.vassar.edu\/international-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offices.vassar.edu\/international-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offices.vassar.edu\/international-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=204"}],"version-history":[{"count":20,"href":"https:\/\/offices.vassar.edu\/international-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/204\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":636,"href":"https:\/\/offices.vassar.edu\/international-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/204\/revisions\/636"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offices.vassar.edu\/international-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/201"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/offices.vassar.edu\/international-services\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=204"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}