F-1 Student Employment

International students are permitted to work on-campus during their academic program without prior work authorization. In addition to on-campus employment, there are four types of off-campus employment for which international students in F-1 status may be eligible (CPT, OPT, Employment Due to Economic Hardship, and Employment Under the Sponsorship of a Qualifying International Organization). Please review more information at the links below.

You may not begin any type of off-campus employment until you have authorization (from ISSS and/or USCIS) to do so. This includes any orientations, training, etc. in which you may be required to engage.

If you are authorized to work, you will need a Social Security Number. If you do not currently have a Social Security Number, you can apply for one.

Types of Employment

On-Campus Employment

"On-campus employment" is a type of employment authorization that international students in F-1 status are automatically granted upon beginning their program of study and can continue doing until they complete their program of study. For examples of on-campus employment and how to apply, click here.

If at any point during your program you have lost your F-1 status, you are not eligible to resume on campus employment until you have regained F-1 status.

On-campus work is limited to 20 hours per week while school is in session. There are no exceptions to this rule. Such employment may be full-time (that is, more than 20 hours per week) during vacation periods for students who are eligible and intend to register for the subsequent academic term.

If you are enrolled in The Center for American Language and Culture, your employment cannot interfere with your class schedule. Any employment must take place outside of your class schedule.

Please note, if you do not yet have a Social Security Number (SSN), you will be required to apply for it once you are offered on-campus employment.

When a student completes their program of study they are not eligible to work on-campus unless:

The student has a different type of employment authorization. In most cases, this will be “Optional Practical Training” (OPT).
The student has been admitted to pursue a new degree at Temple University to start in the next available semester (Ex: Completing a Bachelor's degree in the Spring semester and beginning a Master's degree in the Fall semester).
The student is admitted to a different university, to begin the next available semester, and will transfer their F-1 SEVIS to the new university.

Off-Campus Employment

Volunteering and Unpaid Internships

Generally, unpaid volunteering or unpaid internships do not require an F-1 student to obtain work authorization. However, in some cases USCIS has questioned an individual's prior volunteer experience during the process of changing status from F-1 to another status (such as H-1b). This is something to be mindful of if you are considering doing unpaid volunteer work or unpaid internships. If the unpaid intership or volunteer work is fulfilling a requirement of your major degree at Temple University, we would encourage you to request Curricular Practical Training (CPT).

In addition, laws other than immigration laws (such as labor laws) must also be considered. Labor laws govern what kinds of activities constitute "employment" for which minimum wages must be paid. A nonimmigrant who engages in an unpaid activity that would constitute "employment" under labor laws would be seen as having been "employed." The "employer" in this case would risk having to pay fines and provide back pay under labor laws, as well as possible fines and IRCA/I-9 penalties. The nonimmigrant would risk his or her immigration status if he or she did not have appropriate work authorization to engage in that activity.

The principal federal labor law concerned with "unpaid" positions (there are state laws too) is the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which requires individuals performing work to be paid for their services. Please review the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division Fact Sheet and this site for more detailed information on what type of activity can be considered as volunteering or unpaid internships.

International Student
and Scholar Services

F-1 Student Employment

Types of Employment

Go back to Student Resources More in F-1 Employment Options

International Studentand Scholar Services

Types of Employment

Go back to Student ResourcesMore in F-1 Employment Options

International Student
and Scholar Services

Go back to Student Resources More in F-1 Employment Options