OFFICE OF INTERNATIONAL STUDENT SERVICES

Curricular Practical Training

Curricular Practical Training is any internship or co-op that is required by and/or integral to a student’s academic program. At Wesley, an internship taken for credit, in association with an academic course, is considered Curricular Practical Training (CPT). CPT authorization is required for all internships, regardless of whether the internship is paid or unpaid.

The U.S. government requires that all F-1 international students apply for and receive CPT authorization prior to starting any off-campus job/internship. Therefore, in order for an F-1 international student to participate in any internship component, the student must apply for—and receive—his/her CPT authorization before starting the internship. A student whose application is approved will receive a new Form I-20 with the CPT authorization listed on page 2.

CPT ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

GENERAL CPT ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

The following are the requirements you must meet to be eligible for CPT authorization. If you do not meet these requirements, authorization will be denied.

You must be an F-1 (non-immigrant visa) student.
You must have completed one academic year (fall & spring semseters).
You must be in good academic standing (GPA ≥ 2.30).
You must be registered for a full course of study (9 credits or more).
You must be registered in one of the following eligible courses:
> MM 311/312 (PMM Fall/Spring Internships Year 1)
> MM 313/314 (PMM Fall/Spring Internships Year 2)
> R 101/102 (DMIN Fall/Spring Internships, Year 1)
> R 103/104 (DMIN Fall/Spring Internships, Year 2)
> XX 551 (Directed Study Internship)
Note: to be eligible to enroll in a Directed Study internship you must have enough elective credits remaining in your program to register. Students without any remaining elective credits will be denied CPT authorization.

ELIGIBILITY FOR FIRST YEAR STUDENTS

As a first year Master's student, am I eligible for CPT authorization?

NO. You are not eligible to apply for CPT authorization until you have completed one academic year (consisting of the fall and spring semesters). That means the earliest you would become eligible for CPT authorization is the summer following your first year.

Federal F-1 regulations specify one exception to this rule: graduate level students may waive the "one academic year requirement" if their program requires participation in an internship immediately at the start of their program. At Wesley, this exception can be true for some students in the Residential Doctorate of Ministry Program. However, at the Masters level (MA, MTS, MDIV & certificate programs) there is no programmatic requirement for immediate participation in an internship. Therefore there will be no exception made to the "one academic year" policy for any F-1 Masters student at Wesley. Check back again next year!

ELIGIBILITY FOR TRANSFER STUDENTS

CPT APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

The following lists the steps you must take to apply for CPT authorization at Wesley. You can download these instructions for offline reference here.

STEP 1: REQUEST AN INTERNSHIP OFFER LETTER

You must have a job/internship offer before applying for CPT authorization. The details of your job/internship offer must be outlined in a letter from your employer and included in your application packet. The letter should be on company letterhead and should contain:

the name of employer,
address of employer,
student’s name,
student’s job title,
brief description of duties,
number of hours/week,
start & end dates,
indicate if the position is paid or unpaid (if paid, list amount), and
supervisor contact information.

STEP 2: COMPLETE THE CPT APPLICATION FORM

STEP 3: SUBMIT THE CPT APPLICATION TO ISS

STEP 4: RECEIVE YOUR NEW FORM I-20

If your application is complete and you meet the eligibility requirements, ISS will issue you a new Form I-20. Sometimes ISS may be able to process your application the same day. However, you should plan for allowing three days processing time for any request. You may not begin any job/internship without first having your CPT I-20, so be sure to plan in advance. Also, CPT authorization cannot be backdated (making the employment start date a date that has already passed).

QUICK LINKS

> CPT Eligibility & Application Instructions
> CPT Application Form

CONTACT ISS

Email: ksantiago@wesleyseminary.edu
Phone: +1 (202) 885.6069
Twitter: @WesleyISS

OFFICE HOURS

Walk-In Office Hours:
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday:
12:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Thursday: by appointment.

The ISS office operates M-W 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., and Thursday by appointment.

OFFICE OF INTERNATIONAL STUDENT SERVICES

Curricular Practical Training

CPT ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

CPT APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

QUICK LINKS

> CPT Eligibility & Application Instructions> CPT Application Form

CONTACT ISS

OFFICE HOURS

> CPT Eligibility & Application Instructions
> CPT Application Form