International Student Employment

The Office of International Education assists department in hiring international students for on-campus student positions.

Optional Practical Training (OPT)

Prospective employees who are currently in F-1 (student) status may qualify for OPT. The university supports the use of OPT in any professional position that meets the federal requirements. The prospective employee will need to communicate with the appropriate office at their degree-granting college or university to apply for OPT status. Processing time for OPT applications is typically 2-3 months.

Emporia State University is not currently eligible to support employees seeking a STEM extension and Cap-Gap coverage. This means an ESU employee can remain on OPT for a maximum of 12 months. Employees offered a permanent position will need to communicate with ESU’s Office of Human Resources at the time employment begins in order to make sure the appropriate visa status is acquired before the end of OPT.

Qualifications for OPT: This option is available for individuals in F-1 (student) status who have completed at least one academic year (9 months) as a full-time student. OPT employment must be directly related to the degree earned.

H-1B Visa

ESU supports applications for H-1B visas for prospective employees who meet the federal requirements, and are offered a full-time, permanent position at the university. Upon accepting an employment offer, employees should work with the Office of Human Resources and an immigration attorney to acquire a visa in an appropriate timeframe. For more information, follow the link to the H-1B Visa page.

Permanent Resident (Green Card)

Support for permanent resident applications based on employment at ESU must meet the following criteria:

• Position must be full time and permanent under Department of Homeland Security definitions
• Department must have at least 36 months of expected future funding for the position as verified by the Dean or Director of the unit

Additionally, ESU policy requires the following criteria:

• Employee should have approximately 1-2 years remaining (out of the 6 total) in H-1B status
• Non-faculty employee should have completed the probationary period, and have been employed full time in the position for at least 12 consecutive months
• The head of the unit must approve the request for support

Consideration for permanent residency requests that do not meet the criteria specified in the ESU policy will be on a case-by-case basis, and will require approval of the appropriate Vice President.

For more information on Permanent Resident sponsorship, follow the link to Permanent Residency.