Employment authorized as Curricular Practical Training (CPT) must be "...an integral part of an established curriculum." (8 CFR 214.2(f)(10) It must be related to the student's field of study, and may be either:
CPT is job, location, and date specific. The student must have a valid job offer that is required by the offered course. Unfortunately, due to the structure of Dartmouth's undergraduate curriculum, this type of employment is currently not available to undergraduate students. There are three courses at the Dartmouth College professional schools that will qualify for CPT: At the Thayer School: ENGG 290 and ENGG 390, and at the Tuck School: the Tuck first year summer internship for credit. For Arts and Sciences and Medical School students, graduate degree program thesis/research courses may occasionally qualify for CPT, depending on the internship offered, and the relation of that work experience to the student's degree program. This relationship must be explained in detail by the student's academic advisor in a letter addressed to the International Advisor. In the letter, the academic advisor must:
The Office of Visa and Immigration Services will determine, on a case-by-case basis, which requests comply with immigration regulations pertaining to Curricular Practical Training. The International Advisor has the final say in which requests meet these very stringent requirements and which ones do not. There is no appeal process following a denial of CPT. The student is then free to explore an application for Optional Practical Training.
In general, CPT for graduate students at Dartmouth is authorized only during one vacation term per year, for full-time research at an off-campus location. There is no limit to the amount of time a student may spend doing CPT before they graduate, however. If the amount of full-time CPT exceeds 12 months, however, the student will be ineligible for any period of Optional Practical Training later on. Please contact the Office of Visa and Immigration Services for more information on OPT. A student may not take the same course multiple times for the purposes of CPT authorization.
Graduate students may apply for permission to engage in CPT whenever the program requires their participation, even if it is immediately upon beginning their studies. Undergraduate students must have completed 9 months of full-time study to be eligible for any form of CPT. Neither graduate nor undergraduate students may participate in a CPT internship during the term immediately preceding their program completion.
A presentation covering Curricular Practical Training is available from our Web site. Please click the link below to download and view the presentation:
Students requesting a CPT authorization from the Office of Visa and Immigration Services must fill out an online CPT Request Form available here: . The bottom portion of the form must be filled out and signed by the student's academic advisor or professor. This form must be completed and returned to the Office of Visa and Immigration Services along with a letter from the hiring company describing the internship and verifying the dates, two weeks before the proposed internship start date. If you are an Arts & Sciences or Medical School student, we will also need a letter of support from your academic advisor or Dean. Please see the CPT information sheet for details on the requirements for this letter. If the CPT request is approved, we will issue you a new I-20 form with the CPT endorsement, which will allow you to begin your internship.
Students requesting CPT authorization from the Office of Visa and Immigration Services must fill out a CPT Request Form online: https:/fs8.formsite.com/Rcatmur/CPTApplication/secure_index.html
This completed form must be submitted online to the Office of Visa and Immigration Services along with a copy of your employment offer letter, and, in the case of Arts & Sciences or Medical School students, a letter of support, as described above, from your academic advisor. Please allow at least one to two weeks prior to the begin date of your internship for CPT processing.
