Work in the US option extended for F-1 US student visa holders
March 03 2010 by Liam Clifford
The optional practical training (OPT) rules for students studying in the US on a F-1 US visa have been extended.
Currently, around 10 per cent of the students
living in the US on F-1 visas take advantage of the OPT opportunity, which
allows them to work in the US for a period after they have completed their
studies. Students of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)
subjects, however, now have the chance to work in the US for a period of 29
months.
Although all F-1 students can take advantage of the OPT
opportunity, non-STEM stream students can only work in the US for a period of 12
months.
Students from India living in the US have welcomed the extension
for STEM students, as many Indian students specialise in STEM-stream subjects
when studying in the US.
James W Herman, the counsellor for consular
affairs at the US embassy in India stated, “the OPT facility is career-related
and gives students the opportunity to gain experience and additional skills
related to their area of studies. This flexible option is helping many Indian
students, especially from the STEM disciplines, to acquire valuable work
experience in the US, related to their area of studies.”
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