Academic Training

In order to be eligible:

1. Your primary purpose in the U.S. must be to study.
2. You must be in good academic standing
3. The proposed employment must be directly related to your major field of study.
4. Employment must be authorized in advance.
5. You must maintain health insurance coverage for yourself and any dependents. Your coverage must meet the minimum requirements set by Department of State.

Academic training cannot exceed the period of full course of study or 18 months, whichever is shorter. PhD students may be granted a total of 36 months of academic training in periods of 18 months or less.

The total time of academic training authorized cannot exceed the total duration of your program of study. Earning more than one degree does not increase the amount of time allotted for academic training.

Academic training can be done before or after the student completes his studies:

Academic training prior to program completion:

• Academic training authorized during the course of your studies can be paid or unpaid.
• You will still need to maintain full time enrollment during the spring and fall semesters.
• Any period of academic training used during the course of your program will be deducted from the overall allotment.
• Part time academic training is counted as full time.

Academic training after program completion:

• Employment after your program completion must be for wages or other type of remuneration. If the proposed employment is unpaid, you must show that you are supported by other sources, like your home government.
• Employment must start within 30 days of your program completion date.

You can apply for part time academic training (maximum of 20 hours per week) or full time academic training (more than 20 hours per week).  

In order to apply for academic traning students must submit:

1. The OGI's Academic Training application form
2. Money order for NJIT  processing fee of $200, payable to New Jersey Institute of Technology (for degree students applying for post-completion only)
3. A letter from your academic adviser on departmental letterhead recommending academic training. This letter must:
   1. Confirm that you are in good academic standing and explain how the training is directly related to your field of study.
   2. Describe the goals and objectives of the specific academic training program.
   3. Include a description of the academic training program, including its location, the name and address of the training supervisor, number of hours per week, and dates of the training.
4. A copy of your offer letter that includes your salary on the employer’s letterhead
5. Proof of funding if the job offer is unpaid or doesn’t pay at least $2000/month
6. Proof of insurance for the duration of the AT authorization

If approved, OGI will issue a new DS-2019 with the academic training authorization and details. Processing time is 7 business days.

Students must apply for academic training before the program end date on their DS 2019. The earliest you can apply is 3 months before your employment start date. The latest that you can apply is 2 weeks before your program end date.

NOTE: A change of employer requires a new academic training application. If you are changing employers while already authorized for academic training, contact OGI to be sure you follow the correct timing for your application.