Curricular Practical Training (CPT)

• You are a degree-seeking student currently in valid F-1 status;
• You completed one full academic year (Fall & Spring semester) of continuous full-time enrollment in active nonimmigrant status.
  • Summer enrollment does not count towards the one year full-time enrollment requirement
• You meet one of the following requirements for CPT, which your major department must sign off on:
  • Be enrolled in an internship course for credit that counts towards your degree. (Enrollment in the course must be concurrent with the training. For example, if the internship is in the summer, you must be enrolled in the internship course during the summer) or
  • Your degree must require an internship and that requirement is clearly documented in the University Catalog.
• You are enrolled full-time at CU Boulder or have an approved Reduced Course Load (RCL) during the semester you will be using CPT;
  • If using CPT in the summer you do not need to be enrolled full-time; however, if you are using CPT in the summer based on enrollment in an internship course then you must be enrolled in the internship course during the summer
  • Maintaining an on-campus presence through enrollment in at least one on-campus course requiring physical presence on campus even in your final semester
    • If you plan to graduate in the summer, you must still be registered for credits that require on-campus presence in the summer; enrolling in only distance credits is not sufficient.
• You have a job offer (offer letter and position description) for training in your current major field of study (not minor or previous major)
• The training is not related to the marijuana industry (including working in a lab extracting CBD oil for medical purposes); AND
• You must complete the Curricular Practical Training (CPT) Request e-form group.
  • It consists of three required e-forms (CPT: Academic Program Information, CPT: Training Information, and CPT: Attestation & Academic Advisor/Graduate Program Administrator Review) and is available in the Training/Employment-Related Forms section of your MyISSS portal.
  • Your Academic Advisor or Graduate Program Administrator must complete a section on the CPT: Attestation & Academic Advisor/Graduate Program Administrator Review e-form.  

You will need to speak with your department and/or your Graduate Program Administrator or Academic Advisor to confirm if your degree program is designed in such a way as to enable you to meet one of the following requirements for CPT:

• Be enrolled in an internship course for credit that could count towards your degree. (Enrollment in the course must be concurrent with the training. For example, if the internship is in the summer, you must be enrolled in the internship course during the summer) or
• Your degree must require an internship and that requirement is clearly documented in the University Catalog.

If you do not meet one of the two requirements for CPT listed above, then you have the option to apply for pre-completion OPT for off-campus work authorization. Please review ISSS’s Pre-Completion OPT webpage and ISSS Pre-Completion OPT Guide for information on the application process.

Yes, if the credits earned in the internship course can be used towards your degree requirements.

Students need to confirm with their Academic Department if the course can be taken as Pass/Fail and still count towards their degree. If the internship course will not count towards a student’s degree if taken as Pass/Fail then the course must be taken for a letter grade.

You and the academic department offering the internship credit need to make every effort to ensure a grade is assigned in a timely manner. If the academic department determines an incomplete grade is warranted, then it is important that the university’s incomplete grade assignment policy is followed. In the case of an incomplete grade, a second CPT agreement will not be authorized in order for a student to fulfill their internship course requirements and resolve the incomplete. This means a student will no longer be able to work off campus in pursuit of the educational objectives of the internship. The student and academic department will need to determine what is needed to resolve the incomplete grade, but the off-campus training must end. This may impact the final grade of the internship course or will result in the department and the student determining an alternative means – other than the internship – to complete the course requirements.

Your CPT start and end dates cannot overlap with another semester. CPT authorization can begin after the previous semester ends. The CPT authorization must end before the first day of the next semester (unless you are using CPT in your final semester). If it is your final semester, CPT authorization cannot go beyond the last date of the semester.

• For Fall 2023 graduates, the last date that you can have CPT authorization is December 20, 2023.
• For Spring 2024 graduates, the last date that you can have CPT authorization is May 8, 2024.
• For Fall 2024 Graduates, the last date that you can have CPT authorization is December 18, 2024.
• For Spring 2025 Graduates, the last date that you can have CPT authorization is May 7, 2025.

Your CPT authorization dates must align with your department’s degree requirements.

CPT can be authorized either as part-time, 20 hours of employment or less per week, or full-time, more than 20 hours each week. Whether you are authorized for part-time or full-time CPT depends on your CPT offer letter, which must list the number of hours you will work per week.

Yes, CPT is employer specific. When you apply for CPT, you are requesting CPT authorization for your specific training opportunity, specific number of hours worked per week, specific dates of training, and specific work location (remote work is allowed), pursuing a specific educational goal and objective associated with the particular training/internship opportunity.

Your offer letter must:

• Be on letterhead and addressed to you (the student)
• List the number of hours you will work per week
• Specify your internship start date
  • The CPT start date indicated in your offer letter should be at least 10 business days from the day you submit your Curricular Practical Training (CPT) Request e-form group in the MyISSS portal to allow time for your Academic Advisor/Graduate Program Administrator to complete the CPT: Attestation & Academic Advisor/Graduate Program Administrator Review e-form and for ISSS to process the request.
• Describe the nature of the practical training opportunity (internship duties and expectations)
  • If your offer letter or Internship Course Agreement Form (if applicable) does not include a description of the internship duties/job description, then you must also upload an internship description separately in the CPT: Training Information e-form.

You may have an internship or job, and the training must:

Yes.

If the unpaid internship or volunteer opportunity is closely related to the student’s major field of study, they should request off-campus work authorization through Curricular Practical Training (CPT) or Pre-Completion Optional Practical Training (OPT).

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) rules regarding unpaid training opportunities are complex. It is not always clear whether or not an employer is in full compliance with the FLSA when they offer unpaid internships. It is in a student's best interest to receive CPT authorization before undertaking any off-campus training opportunity, the only exception being volunteer work for a non-profit/humanitarian entity.

Formal volunteer activities for non-profit entities that are not related to a course of study will not require authorization. Some examples where authorization may not be required include volunteering for the American Red Cross, the Humane Society, Habitat for Humanity, Boys and Girls Club of America, etc.”

Work authorization, such as CPT or pre-completion OPT, is required for all off-campus practical training opportunities (paid and unpaid) during your academic program. There is no minimum salary you must receive while authorized for CPT.  

If you decide to participate in a volunteer or unpaid opportunity, please review Volunteering in F-1 Status for important considerations related to unpaid training experiences.  

International students in F-1 status are required to maintain an on-campus presence every fall and spring semester. A international student in F-1 status can have an internship opportunity that is outside of Colorado during the fall or spring semester if the student will be working remotely from Colorado and maintaining their on-campus presence.

On-campus presence during the summer is only needed if it is the student’s first or final semester. A student in F-1 status can have an internship opportunity that is outside of Colorado during the summer if the summer semester is not the student’s first or final semester.

A student wishing to participate in a hybrid CPT experience (a student maintains on-campus presence and full-time enrollment but sometimes travels outside of Boulder commuting distance to participate in on-site internship activities) during the fall or spring semester should consult with ISSS to understand the eligibility requirements for such authorization as well as the documentation necessary to prove maintenance of status through on-campus presence.

Yes, CPT will not impact your on-campus employment. Be sure you are aware of student-related on-campus employment restrictions that determine how many on-campus hours you may work per week, which impacts you and your maintenance of F-1 status. The number of CPT hours you can work per week depends on whether you are authorized for part-time CPT, 20 hours of employment or less per week, or full-time CPT, more than 20 hours each week.

If you are authorized for a cumulative total of 12 months or more of full-time CPT at your current degree level, you are ineligible for Optional Practical Training at that degree level.

Yes. It is possible to take advantage of both the CPT benefit (authorized by ISSS) and the Pre-Completion OPT benefit (authorized by USCIS) at that the same time. However, on pre-completion you may have multiple training or internships as long as they each relate to your major field of study so it is not necessary to have CPT if authorized for Pre-Completion OPT. 

Please review the Career Services’ policy addressing reneging on a job or internship offer letter. Please keep this policy in mind prior to accepting an internship offer.

The Curricular Practical Training (CPT) Request e-form group consists of three required e-forms (CPT: Academic Program Information, CPT: Training Information, and CPT: Attestation & Academic Advisor/Graduate Program Administrator Review) and is available in the Training/Employment-Related Forms section of your MyISSS portal. It should be submitted at least 2 weeks before your training opportunity start date to allow for processing by your Academic Advisor or Graduate Program Administrator and ISSS. Once ISSS receives your Curricular Practical Training (CPT) Request, it will be processed within 3 to 5 business days and ISSS will issue an I-20 authorizing CPT. If enrolling in an internship course to meet the CPT eligibility requirement, the earliest you may apply is after you are registered for the internship course. ISSS must be able to verify enrollment in the internship course on your academic course schedule.

Once you have a job or internship offer, and you are registered for an internship course, if applicable, you must complete the Curricular Practical Training (CPT) Request e-form group available in the Training/Employment-Related Forms section of your MyISSS portal. Once ISSS receives your complete Curricular Practical Training (CPT) Request, it will be processed within 3 to 5 business days. If you meet the CPT eligibility requirements, ISSS will issue you your CPT authorized I-20. 

You will need to upload your offer letter to the Curricular Practical Training (CPT) Request. Your offer letter must: 

• Be on letterhead and addressed to you (the student)

• Specify your internship start date

  • The CPT start date indicated in your offer letter should be at least 10 business days from the day you submit your Curricular Practical Training (CPT) Request in the MyISSS portal to allow time for your Academic Advisor/Graduate Program Administrator to complete the CPT: Attestation & Academic Advisor/Graduate Program Administrator Review e-form and for ISSS to process the request.

• List the number of hours you will work per week

• Describe the nature of the practical training opportunity (internship duties and expectations)

  • If offer letter does not include a description of the internship duties, then, you must also upload an internship description

While ISSS is processing your request, we are confirming you meet the eligibility requirements, and are maintaining F-1 status. ISSS will submit the CPT authorization to SEVIS, generate a new I-20 with the CPT authorization on page 2, sign the I-20 and email it to you.

You may start working on the day that your CPT authorization begins as listed on page 2 of your I-20. Please remember, working without authorization will result in the termination of your F-1 SEVIS status.

CPT authorization based on an internship can only be authorized for one semester at a time. An extension only applies to extending a current/ongoing internship with no change to complete the internship in the current term (current term includes up to the day before the next semester begins). 

ISSS will consider a request to extend only if the following parameters are met:

• The request to extend CPT is received prior to the end of the current term in which the CPT is authorized (i.e. prior to the last day of the summer, fall, or spring term)
• The request to extend CPT is accompanied by a new CPT request which includes an explanation of why the extension is required to meet the requirements of the internship course. The explanation must be provided by the academic department.
• The extension dates requested do not overlap with the next semester start date
• The request to extend the CPT is received before the current authorized CPT ends

CPT extension requests require the submission of a new Curricular Practical Training (CPT) Request e-form group. Requests submitted after the last day of enrollment for the current term in which the original CPT was authorized will be denied.

CPT is date specific, employer specific, hours worked specific, location specific, and educational goal and objective specific. If anything about your current CPT authorization changes, you must report the change to ISSS. This includes updating your training location if you indicated that you are working remotely from your home address and your home address changes. In this case, you must let ISSS know so that we can update your authorization to reflect the correct work location. If your home address changes, please make sure to submit that change in the Buff Portal within 10 days of your move.

The list below is a suggestion of records you may be asked to present during or after your CPT authorization. This list is not exhaustive. Be sure to maintain documentation that the work/internship is in your major field of study.