CPT: Curricular Practical Training

F-1 Student Status Requirement
Hours of Employment
Duration of Authorization
Application Process
OIS Processing Information
CPT and OPT

Curricular Practical Training (CPT) is work authorization that allows F-1 international students to participate in paid off-campus academic internships during their degree program. The purpose of CPT is academic, not just for employment purposes, and the internship must be considered an integral part of a student’s degree program. Students must have a specific job/internship offer to apply. If the internship is an unpaid or volunteer position, CPT is not required. Students CANNOT accept any kind of compensation for work performed in an unpaid internship.

Please note that USC Language Academy students are not eligible to apply for CPT.

F-1 Student Status Requirement

Students must have been in F-1 student status for at least one academic year in a degree-seeking program before they can apply for CPT and must have properly maintained F-1 status each semester. The only exception to this rule applies to those students who are in degree programs that require an internship or practicum hours to fulfill degree requirements and this is stated in the USC catalog. 

Hours of Employment:

• Work hours are limited to 20 hours per week (part-time) during Fall and Spring semesters and 40 hours per week (full-time) during the Summer semesters.
• Total hours worked in any semester for the combined TOTAL of on- and off-campus work cannot exceed 40 hours per week (including graduate assistantship positions) for full-time employment.
• During summers, students may be registered for CPT unit(s) only and still be able to maintain student status. The Reduced Course Load (RCL) request form is not required in this case.
• Students can work full-time in their final semester, with department approval, but they must have part-time enrollment, defined as:
  • Undergraduate: 6 or less units
  • Graduate students: 4 or less units total or one final class. If one final class,  the total combined units, including the CPT credit, cannot be more than 5 units (Ex. 4-unit class + 1 unit of GRSC 596).
• Also, CPT may be approved full-time when students are registered only for thesis or dissertation units (such as 594/794).
• Program extensions will not be granted only for the purpose of working with CPT.

Duration of Authorization:

CPT authorization is given on a semester basis and students must apply separately for each semester they wish to do CPT. CPT is only authorized for the dates of the specific semester. Restrictions on end dates may occur based on start of RA/TA positions.

Current start and end dates for CPT are below. Please note dates are not guaranteed:

Viterbi Masters and Ph.D. Engineering students: Please visit the Viterbi CPT information page for more information regarding start and end dates.

Application Process:

Registration for Academic Credit:  In order to receive CPT authorization, students must be registered for 1-2 academic units in an internship course or a class that requires an internship at USC during the semester they wish to do CPT.  Students must register for the units and complete the application process for each semester they wish to do CPT.

A student’s academic advisor can assist with what internship class they can register for. Some schools, such as Marshall and Viterbi, have specific courses they require for CPT registration, but many graduate students will need to register for GRSC 596. Undergraduate students have the option to enroll in MDA 250, a general internship class through the USC Career Planning and Placement Center, or an internship class through their department.

Please note: Exceptions to registration and one year F-1 status only occur if the internship hours are required for the awarding of a degree by the student’s academic department. Currently, at USC only the following Masters degree programs have required internship hours: (1) Urban and Regional Planning, (2) Public Administration, (3) Health Administration and (4) CNTV: Peter Stark Program.  Students in these Masters programs DO NOT need to register for an internship course in order to apply for CPT.

Engineering students (ENGR 596) - Click on links below to begin

Engineering Graduate Students

For all other applicants, to begin:

OIS Processing Information

Once all documents are submitted to OIS and the application is complete, OIS will process an updated I-20 that lists on page 3 the location of internship and whether the CPT is part- or full-time. CPT I-20 start dates will be listed either as the requested start date or the approval date, whichever is later.  

Processing time for CPT applications at OIS is 4 business days.  Students cannot begin working until they receive their new I-20 with CPT authorization from OIS.

CPT and OPT:

CPT does not interfere with students’ eligibility for Optional Practical Training (OPT) after graduation unless they have done a total of 12 months full-time CPT during their degree program. In this case, they would lose the option to do OPT.  Amounts under the 12 months full-time DO NOT cancel any portion of OPT.