On-Campus Employment

Please see the Overall Process Tab for more instructions.

  • Federal Regulations and Definition
  • Eligibility Requirements and Limitations
  • Overall Process

Federal Regulations and Definition

Federal Regulations regarding on-campus employment may be found under 8 CFR 214.2(f)(9)(i).

  • On-campus employment is not guaranteed for students. Relying on on-campus employment for sustainable income throughout your program is not advised. All employment opportunities for on-campus employment will be found in Hand Shake.  
  • On-campus employment must either be performed on the university’s premises, (including on-site commercial firms that provide services for students on campus, such as the university’s bookstore or cafeteria), or at an off-campus location that is educationally affiliated with the university.
  • Employment with on-site commercial firms, such as a construction company building a university building, which does not provide direct student services, is not considered on-campus employment. In the case of off-campus locations, the educational affiliation must be associated with the school’s established curriculum or related to contractually funded research projects at the post-graduate level.

  • You are authorized to work on-campus throughout full-time enrollment in your degree program as long as you maintain valid immigration status. If you are not in valid immigration status or you have a reinstatement pending, you are not eligible for any type of employment authorization.

Eligibility Requirements and Limitations

When you initially enter the U.S. to begin a new course of study, you may not start on-campus employment more than 30 days prior to the actual start of your classes.

  • You are eligible for on-campus employment once you have been registered in SEVIS during your first semester at Missouri S&T.
    • International Students may not engage in on-campus employment after completing a course of study, except for optional practical training (OPT) which requires authorization from USCIS.
    • International Students  may not engage in on-campus employment if you do not have a valid immigration status or you have a reinstatement pending with USCIS. Student must maintain an Active record at all times during employment.
    • International Students are limited to 20 cumulative hours per week while school is in session. You can work full-time during official school breaks for more than 20 hours.

Overall Process

  • Before authorization for on-campus employment, International Students must receive an official job offer letter from the on-campus employer. Once the official offer letter has been received, students must complete the On-Campus Employment Offer Form.
  • Students then must submit the on-campus employment offer form to International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) for processing - it must be an original form and cannot be scanned or altered.
  • When your on-campus employment form has been approved, you will receive an email from isss@mst.edu to pick up your on-campus employment form. Use your on-campus employment form to begin applying for a social security number with the SSN office.
  • The Career Opportunities and Employer Relations Office (COER) is dedicated to helping students and alumni find part-time and full-time employment. You can find employment opportunities on the COER JobBoardly webpage.
    • Be sure to filter by category - On-campus.