Information for Academic Departments & Academic Advisors

International students are required in many circumstances to request approval from their international advisor before being eligible for work-authorization or dropping below full-time enrollment. ISSS asks academic advisors and departments to approve certain requests. Advisors should receive an email subjected "Request Advisor Notification." Below is specific information about the kinds of requests that academic advisors may see an international student request their approval for.

Concurrent Enrollment Requests

• What is concurrent enrollment?
  • Enrollment that requires that the credit hours/course being taken at another school to be transferrable to Missouri S&T upon completion and will apply to the student's degree program.
  • Full-time enrollment requirements for international students can be met by combining the number of credit hours being taken at Missouri S&T with those taken concurrently at another school.
• Why do we ask academic advisors to approve it?
  • Proof of enrollment at another school is required before the credit hours being taken concurrently can be counted toward full-time enrollment and ensures that international students are maintaining their visa status.
  • The method of course instruction will also be evaluated before the student can be considered full-time enrolled. If the requirements listed above are not met, the student's SEVIS record will not be registered for the semester, and they could have their SEVIS record terminated and lose their visa status.

CPT Requests

• What is CPT?
  • Curricular Practical Training (CPT)  is a pre-completion, off-campus employment authorization available to students in good F-1 status for alternative work/study, internship, cooperative education, or any other type of required internship or practicum that is offered by sponsoring employers.
  • CPT should be approached from a curricular perspective and only secondarily from the employment perspective. That is to say that the focus should be on the academic outcome from the experience rather than a student's desire for employment.
  • CPT may be full-time (20 hours or more per week) or part-time (20 hours or less per week). Please review the above link for eligibility requirements.
• Why do we ask academic advisors to approve it?
  • All students authorized for CPT must enroll in an academic course for at least one credit hour related to the student's CPT.  The student must be enrolled in and complete the course during the academic term during which the CPT will occur (fall, spring, summer). Students must have enrolled for at least one academic year (Fall and Spring semester).
  • Students are required to maintain full course enrollment during fall and spring semesters. In most cases, summer is not a required enrollment period, so students would not be required to maintain full-time enrollment (see international student enrollment requirements). Students who have been enrolled in their current degree program for less than one full academic year or who have attended Missouri S&T for less than one full academic year should meet with their international student advisor to discuss whether full-time enrollment is required during the summer semester.
  • Students who have already received a program extension (explained further down) are not eligible for CPT.

OPT Recommendation Requests

• What is Post-Completion OPT?
  • Optional Practical Training (OPT) is a temporary job training opportunity that must be directly related to an F-1 student's major area of study. It is intended to provide a student with practical experience in his or her field of study upon completion of a degree program.
  • Students approved for OPT receive 12 months initially of work authorization post-graduation once approved by the USCIS. They may be eligible for the 24-month extension based on STEM degree fields.
  • Students who are in graduate thesis programs (masters with thesis or PhD programs) may apply for OPT once they meet credit hour requirements.
• Why do we ask academic advisors to approve it?
  • Students applying for OPT must have met the credit hour requirements for degree completion. Students must have enrolled for at least one academic year (Fall and Spring semester).

Program Extensions

• What is a program extension?
  • Program extensions are required when a students I-20 (document verifying their visa status) is close to expiring. Student can note this in their ISSS Gateway Portal and on their most recently issued Form I-20.
• Why do we ask academic advisors to approve it?
  • We ask advisors to confirm/assist in verifying one of these acceptable reasons for extension requests has been met: (1) Student has changed their major, (2) student has been approved for reduced enrollment in a previous semester due to a medical condition, (3)students has changed programs between Master's non-thesis to Master's with thesis, (4) student has had a change in Academic Advisor, (5) student has had a change in Research Topic, or (6) an unexpected delays in publications, thesis/dissertation, or other research problems.
  • The following reasons are not acceptable for extension requests: (1) Delays caused by academic probation or suspension, (2) Delays caused by participation in Curricular Practical Training (CPT), (3) Delays caused by enrolling in courses that were not required for your program or could not be counted toward your degree requirements (excluding courses required as a condition of admission or by your academic advisor), (4) To complete a certificate program or minor degree, or (5) To participate in a future CPT.

Reduced Course Load Requests

• What is a reduced course load request?
  • Students may also receive full-time enrollment exceptions in the cases of participating in full-time CPT, concurrent enrollment, or because they have been approved by Policy Memo II-20 by the Graduate Education Office.
• Why do we ask academic advisors to approve it?
  • Approval for a reduced course load requires the affirmation from a student's academic advisor.
  • The primary reasons a student will request a reduced course load include: (1) diagnosis of an illness or medical condition, (2) improper course level placement, (3) initial difficult with reading requirements, (4) initial difficulty with the English language, (5) being a part-time commuter student, (6) the student will complete their course of study in their current term, or (7) the student is unfamiliar with the American teaching methods.