These sections request specific information about the company and the agreed-upon practical training schedule and compensation, as well as the formal training plan, respectively.
See 8 C.F.R. For instance, every Training Plan must describe the direct relationship between the STEM OPT opportunity and the student’s qualifying STEM degree, as well as the relationship between the STEM OPT opportunity and the student’s goals and objectives for work-based learning. Although compliance with the program’s various reporting requirements predominately apply to students and DSOs, there are instances where STEM OPT employers must assist in tracking the STEM OPT students and their practical training progress.Please note that the Official with Signatory Authority must be familiar with the STEM OPT student’s goals and performance, and have the authority to affirm that the statements provided on the Form I-983 are true and correct.So long as the STEM OPT student and employer meet the regulatory requirements, and the modified Form I-983 meets the specified requirements, the student’s employment authorization will not cease based on a change to the plan.The STEM OPT employer must review the student’s annual self-evaluation on their own progress and sign it to attest to its accuracy.The student must submit the first assessment within 12 months of the STEM OPT start date, and a second, final assessment that recaps the training and knowledge acquired during the complete training period. This automatic 180-day extension ceases once USCIS adjudicates your STEM OPT extension application.Staffing and temporary agencies and consulting firms may seek to employ students under the STEM OPT program, but only if they will be the entity that provides the practical training experience to the student and they have and maintain a bona fide employer-employee relationship with the student. As indicated above, the employer and student must report such a material change by submitting a modified Form I-983 to the DSO at the earliest available opportunity.While employers may rely on their existing training programs or policies to satisfy the requirements relating to performance evaluation and oversight and supervision, the student’s Training Plan must nevertheless be customized for the individual student.
214.2(f)(10)(ii)(C)(11). Non-STEM degree. Post-completion OPT and Unemployment While students are not required to have an employer when OPT is requested in SEVIS, students authorized for post-completion OPT are expected to be employed. Transfer and/or beginning of new program of study. Number of hours you work, full time (at least 20+ hours per week) or part time (20 hours or less per week) Unemployment longer than 10 days (report date of last job) Decision to end employment/OPT and leave the U.S.A. Students may apply for the STEM OPT extension no sooner than 90 days prior to the current EAD expiration date. To be eligible to apply for OPT, you must: (1) have been in full-time student status for at least one academic year by the requested start date of your OPT, (2) be maintaining valid F-1 status at the time of the application, and (3) have not used OPT at the same degree level previously. The form is not complete until the employer has signed and certified it in the designated areas.Employers must work with the STEM OPT student to report to the DSO any material changes to, or material deviations from, the student’s formal training plan, by filling out a new Form I-983. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Pre-completion OPT. The employer must attest to this fact by signing the Form I-983, Training Plan for STEM OPT Students.
Once signed, the employer must return the evaluation to the student, who will provide it to their DSO for recordkeeping.Below are the specific instances in which employers are required to fulfill reporting requirements.Employers play a key role in maintaining and strengthening the integrity of the STEM OPT extension program.