What CPT is
CPT authorizes an F-1 student to do a specific internship, co-op, or practicum that is an integral part of the curriculum — either required by your program or done for course credit. It is employer-specific and date-specific: it authorizes that job, at that company, for those exact dates, and nothing else.
You must be enrolled and eligible
You generally need to have been a full-time student for at least one academic year, be in good status, and have the offer in hand. CPT is authorized by the international student office (the designated school official updates your record), not by the federal agency, so it is faster to obtain than OPT — but you still cannot start work before the authorization begins.
Tied to the curriculum
CPT requires a curricular connection: the internship is a program requirement, or you register for an internship course with a faculty coordinator, learning objectives, and a deliverable. "I want to work in my field" is not enough on its own — there has to be an academic tie your program signs off on.
Part-time vs. full-time
Part-time CPT (20 hours a week or less) can run during the semester alongside classes. Full-time CPT (more than 20 hours) is normally for summer or a co-op term when you are not carrying a full course load. Twelve months or more of full-time CPT eliminates your eligibility for post-completion OPT — a rule worth knowing before a long co-op.
The paperwork sequence
Get the written offer, meet your faculty coordinator to set up the credit/curricular tie, then take everything to the international office for the CPT authorization on a new I-20 before your start date. Each new job or date change needs a new authorization. Do not begin work on a verbal offer.
CPT then OPT
Most students use CPT for internships and co-ops during the degree and save OPT for after graduation. The international office tracks how much of each you have used so a summer co-op does not accidentally cost you your post-graduation work year.
Fictional information
UW–Porter Falls is a work of parody. Every office, person, building, phone number and statistic on this page is invented; nothing here describes a real institution or a service you can actually contact.