Employment for Recently Graduated International Students

After you graduate from CU Denver you may have many questions about employment and what you can do. If you are not sure what your options are after graduation please see our page on Options After Graduation. Remember you must have proper approval to work in the U.S., if you do not have approval you are working illegally which will negatively affect your immigration status.

Please see our information below about options for recently graduated students in regard to employment. If you have additional questions feel free to contact your Immigration Service Specialist.

Currently Approved For OPT

If you are currently approved for OPT you may be looking for a job, currently have a job, or looking to change your status to another work-type or other VISA. See below some of the resources we have compiled for you.

Help Finding A Job

Finding a job can be difficult, but as a former student at CU Denver, you are eligible to use some of the same resources you had access to as a student. See some of the job resources below that could help you in your job search

• University of Colorado Job Site
• CU Denver Career Center
• Experiential Learning Center (ELC)

STEM Employment Extension

STEM is Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics. The U.S. government has distinguished students graduating in these specific majors the ability to apply for a 24-month extension to their current 12-month OPT to a total of 36 months of OPT approval. [8 CFR 214.2(f)(10)(ii)]. For more information on STEM OPT and how this affects you and your employer, see Study in the States STEM OPT Hub.

Requesting 24-Month STEM Extension

Eligibility

If you completed a program that has been assigned a STEM-eligible CIP Code, you may be able to apply for a STEM Extension to their approved period of Post-Completion OPT. STEM Extension OPT gives you two additional years to work in your field of study.

The CIP Code assigned to your program is the six-digit code in the Program of Study section of your I-20. You can find the full list of approved STEM degrees and corresponding CIP Codes on the Study in the States website.

To apply for STEM Extension OPT, your employer must participate in the Department of Homeland Security’s E-Verify program. Please check with your employer to see if they participate in E-Verify.

If you work for the University of Colorado, your employer participates in E-Verify.

While on STEM Extension OPT, you will need to continue to report any employment changes within 10 days of the change. Employment reporting updates will usually include updating the Form I-983 Training Plan.

For more details about STEM Extension OPT, please review our STEM OPT Eligibility Course.

Overview of the STEM Extension OPT Application Process

1. Complete STEM OPT Eligibility Course.
2. Complete STEM OPT Request in MyISSS.
3. Receive and sign your STEM OPT Recommendation I-20 from ISSS.
4. Complete the Form I-765 to apply to USCIS for the STEM OPT EAD Card AFTER receiving the I-20 from ISSS.

Useful STEM Extension OPT Forms and Documents

• Form I-765
• Form I-983
• Form I-983 Training Plan – Completion Guide