Employment
|
employment in US employment of
nonimmigrants in US is strictly regulated and failure to follow the employment
law can result in loss of privileges. you are eligible
to apply for and accept employment only if you are in good standing with the
immigration service. this means that you must carry a full course of study and
process all the appropriate forms for change of major, degree objective, and
school transfer, for approval. most student employment falls into one of these
three categories;
part-time employment on campus: f-1 students are eligible to accept
on-campus employment up to 20 hours per week while school is in session and
full-time (more than 20 hrs per week) during holidays, school breaks, and
vacation periods. provided that a student is properly maintaining f-1 status, no
written authorization is required. j-1 students are also eligible for part-time
on-campus employment, but j-1 employment must be authorized in writing on the
iap-66 in a separate letter from the sponsor.
employment for economic necessity: some students experience unexpected
financial crises after beginning study in US. examples of such crises could
include sudden devaluation of home-country currency, loss of scholarship, or the
illness or death of a private sponsor. in such cases, if a student is able to
how that off-campus part-time employment could provide a solution to the
emergency, he or she may request employment authorization through US Immigration
& Naturalization Service with the endorsement of their international student
adviser. f-1 students may do so only after they have maintained f-1 status for a
minimum of 12 months. j-1 students should request off-campus employment
authorization from j-1 program sponsor. off-campus employment must always be
authorized in writing before a student begins work.
f-1 practical training/ j-1 academic training: employment that applies
the concepts learned in the student’s academic program is considered practical
or academic training, and may be requested regardless of a student’s economic
need. such employment is generally authorized only after the student has had a
chance to participate in classroom activities and gain some theoretical
background, which she or he would then apply in a practical training. f-1
students are required to maintain their full-time student status for a minimum
of one academic year or nine consecutive months before they become eligible to
request practical training. j-1 students, similarly, may not request request
academic training for a period longer than their length of study in US. both
academic training and practical training may be undertaken prior to or following
a student’s completion of his or her program of studies. the length of
authorization, the type of job, and the employer, are all generally regulated
for both f-1 and j-1 students. in every case, employment for practical or
academic training must be authorized in writing before a student begins work. |