Optional Practical Training (OPT) and Related Data
Optional Practical Training (OPT), STEM OPT, and Curricular Practical Training (CPT) Authorizations, 2007-2020
Annual Growth in Optional Practical Training (OPT); Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) OPT; and
Curricular Practical Training (CPT) Authorizations, 2007 - 2020
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Approved Count of Approved Authorizations Issued and with Employment Start Dates in Indicated Calendar Year
Authorizations 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
------------------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- -------- --------
Total OPT issued 81,976 82,525 82,843 91,860 103,393 111,978 120,897 133,098 159,298 190,683 218,998 208,065 202,866 186,988
Total OPT employed 24,838 45,357 46,198 51,080 56,421 62,628 67,740 77,619 99,323 137,570 152,681 145,564 138,898 122,699
CPT employed 57,403 61,171 48,568 57,409 63,911 68,482 76,223 92,528 111,135 122,529 132,380 151,525 116,338 97,368
STEM OPT employed 2 2,128 5,869 9,356 13,504 15,937 18,782 21,456 27,493 41,782 64,481 69,650 72,116 63,906
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement,
2007 to 2020 Annual Growth in OPT, STEM OPT and CPT Authorizations and Employment Authorization Document (EAD) Issuances
Top 200 Employers for OPT and STEM OPT Students, 2019
Top 200 Employers for OPT and STEM OPT Students (sorted by STEM OPT), 2019**
EMPLOYER TOTAL OPT STEM.OPT
1 Amazon 2,813 569 2,431
2 Google 1,123 268 955
3 Microsoft Corporation 817 191 700
4 Intel Corporation 790 174 690
5 Deloitte 822 215 676
6 Facebook 708 185 612
7 Integra Technologies LLC 721 169 575
8 Apple, Inc 463 126 378
9 IBM 402 61 373
10 AZTech Technologies LLC 1,057 734 368
11 Walmart 441 125 358
12 PricewaterhouseCoopers 380 98 308
13 Veridic Solutions 424 148 307
14 Goldman Sachs 363 100 301
15 Marlabs, Inc 373 110 285
16 Cisco System, Inc 320 64 281
17 Ernst & Young 360 104 278
18 Populus Group 325 76 274
19 JP Morgan Chase 308 51 270
20 Randstad 383 150 249
21 Citigroup 286 70 241
22 Cerner Corporation 272 60 235
23 Tesla, Inc 271 59 230
24 Massachusetts Institute of Technology 345 145 228
25 Stanford University 316 116 226
26 Cognizant 272 66 225
27 Pioneer Consulting Services 249 42 222
28 Modis E&T LLC 248 38 220
29 Cummins 249 61 212
30 XCG Design Corporation 320 119 201
31 Antra, Inc 218 34 196
32 Qualcomm Technologies, Inc 222 47 194
33 Wayfair 234 68 185
34 Oracle 230 60 182
35 Cloud Big Data 331 171 181
36 Bloomberg 197 32 173
37 University of Pennsylvania 231 74 172
38 Johns Hopkins University 275 115 169
39 Capgemini America 175 17 162
40 Uber Technologies, Inc 193 51 152
41 E-Giants Technologies LLC 180 32 152
42 Columbia University 262 128 148
43 Massachusetts General Hospital 164 32 143
44 CG Max Design Corp 150 11 140
45 Inxech Corp 208 81 134
46 eBay or PayPal 166 47 134
47 Apex Systems 216 103 129
48 University of Maryland 215 103 129
49 University of California, Los Angeles 225 113 128
50 Oath 146 27 128
51 University of Washington 198 81 127
52 Tellon Trading, Inc 207 82 126
53 Dell, Inc 135 22 122
54 Northwestern University 193 81 121
55 FedEx Services 134 24 121
56 University of California, Berkeley 191 92 119
57 California Creative Solutions, Inc 129 12 119
58 Robert Half 358 252 116
59 Morgan Stanley 144 41 110
60 National Institutes of Health 123 26 110
61 University of California San Francisco 134 36 107
62 University of Minnesota 195 97 106
63 Yale University 143 55 106
64 McKinsey & Company 140 37 106
65 Insight Global 210 112 103
66 Inteliroute Technologies LLC 125 42 103
67 Pro-Tek Consulting 123 30 102
68 Vyzer Solutions, Inc 105 12 102
69 Capital One 129 32 101
70 Applied Materials 112 22 100
71 Collabera 169 81 99
72 Adecco 161 73 98
73 Findream, LLC 124 27 98
74 Amensys, Inc 107 17 98
75 Synopsys, Inc 108 24 97
76 JNIT Technologies 106 14 97
77 VMWare 112 24 96
78 University of California, San Diego 175 95 95
79 Expedia, Inc 107 18 95
80 University of Michigan 190 108 91
81 Tata Consultancy Services Limited 140 57 91
82 University of Southern California 195 121 90
83 Kelly Services 172 94 90
84 Infosys Limited 138 53 90
85 Purdue University 173 94 87
86 Indiana University 156 75 87
87 Aecom 100 20 87
88 Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center 98 22 87
89 LinkedIn 95 14 86
90 Federal Soft Systems 95 14 85
91 Bank of America 124 48 84
92 Boston Consulting Group 108 27 84
93 SAP America, Inc 113 34 83
94 University of Florida 240 163 82
95 Vintech Solutions, Inc 99 29 82
96 Cornell University 194 131 79
97 The Mathworks, Inc 88 17 79
98 Michigan State University 143 73 78
99 Artech Information Systems LLC 100 31 78
100 Sakthi Automotive Group 95 28 78
101 Mythri Consulting LLC 92 25 78
102 Juniper Network 91 16 78
103 Georgia Institute of Technology 131 62 77
104 California Institute of Technology 110 42 77
105 Micron Technology, Inc 104 36 77
106 Volt Management Corporation 87 13 77
107 Friendly Consultants, Inc 85 15 77
108 Baylor College of Medicine 98 31 74
109 Denken Solutions, Inc 83 14 74
110 BSASPEC, Inc 115 46 73
111 Itlize Global LLC 90 20 73
112 Mercury Systems, Inc. 89 26 73
113 Kanap Systems LLC 77 14 73
114 Duke University 129 64 72
115 Egen Solutions, Inc 105 42 72
116 Samsung Research America 87 22 70
117 RevereIT LLC 81 16 70
118 Arizona State University 225 181 69
119 University of Pittsburgh 151 83 69
120 Baanyan Software Services, Inc 97 33 69
121 Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory 94 34 69
122 Remote Tiger, Inc 81 18 69
123 Brigham and Womens Hospital 90 27 68
124 Perficient, Inc 80 16 68
125 NVIDIA Corporation 85 24 67
126 Barclays 84 26 67
127 Masswell Development Group, Inc 314 263 66
128 Sinocontech 130 65 66
129 Harvard University 93 29 66
130 IMCS Group, Inc 94 36 65
131 HCL America, Inc 85 24 65
132 HP, Inc 84 25 65
133 Validation Associates LLC 73 12 65
134 Washington University in St. Louis 94 33 64
135 Weill Cornell Medical College 82 26 64
136 Blackrock 77 19 64
137 Pyramid Consulting, Inc 85 32 63
138 Salesforce 83 26 63
139 Aptiv 76 18 63
140 HCL Global Systems, Inc 75 16 63
141 MicroNet 79 19 62
142 Charter Communications 72 12 62
143 WissenIT, Inc 80 27 61
144 Formac Inc 78 22 61
145 Iowa State University 99 53 60
146 Flexon Technologies 90 39 60
147 Softworld Technologies LLC 88 36 60
148 UT Southwestern Medical Center 78 20 60
149 Adobe Systems Incorporated 71 17 60
150 Rutgers University 147 93 59
151 Capital Info Group, Inc 75 25 59
152 TekWissen LLC 75 21 59
153 University of Utah 110 53 58
154 Vanderbilt University 82 29 58
155 University of Illinois at Urbana 108 60 57
156 Elbum LLC 124 71 53
157 Kforce, Inc 79 32 52
158 University of California, Davis 104 56 51
159 Nemo IT Solutions 113 77 49
160 University of Kentucky 83 42 49
161 Vastika, Inc 75 32 48
162 North Carolina State University 155 110 47
163 Vastek, Inc 79 34 46
164 Emory University 76 34 46
165 Northeastern University 128 88 45
166 Arecy LLC 115 70 45
167 Experis US, Inc 73 31 45
168 University of Arizona 98 59 42
169 Acuty LLC 149 112 41
170 Virginia Tech 87 50 41
171 Florida International University 96 66 40
172 Premier IT Solutions LLC 74 39 40
173 The University of Texas at Austin 73 37 39
174 University of Kansas 72 40 37
175 Clemson University 87 53 34
176 Pennsylvania State University 75 46 33
177 University of Houston 101 70 32
178 Colorado State University 85 61 30
179 University of Central Florida 74 50 30
180 University of Cincinnati 77 57 27
181 CloudData Technology LLC 91 70 24
182 Wayne State University 87 66 23
183 Rang Technologies 71 50 23
184 Drexel University 72 51 22
185 Georgetown University 71 51 22
186 Boston University 82 64 19
187 Primary Research Solution LLC 81 63 19
188 University of Texas at Arlington 81 64 18
189 Global IT Experts, Inc 121 106 15
190 University of Illinois at Chicago 141 129 14
191 Aerotek, Inc 139 130 11
192 Illinois Institute of technology 103 96 8
193 World Bank 96 94 2
194 University at Buffalo 115 114 1
195 Disney 90 89 1
196 Carnegie Mellon University 132 132 0
197 Binghamton University 92 92 0
198 New York University 86 86 0
199 Syracuse University 79 79 0
200 Tuutkia LLC 73 73 0
--- -------------------------------------- ------ ------ --------
TOTAL (of top 200) 37,385 13,866 25,860
**If a student is employed at the same Employer while in a different program, he/she will be counted multiple times for that employer.
Source: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 2019 Top 200 Employers for OPT and STEM OPT Students (sorted by TOTAL)
Countries of Citizenship by Number of SEVIS Records with Authorizations to Participate in STEM OPT, 2020
Countries of Citizenship by Number of SEVIS Records with Authorizations to Participate in STEM OPT, 2020
Country.of.Citizenship STEM.OPT
--- -------------------------------- --------
1 INDIA 63,744
2 CHINA 31,124
3 SOUTH KOREA 2,938
4 TAIWAN 2,353
5 NEPAL 2,206
6 NIGERIA 1,616
7 IRAN 1,296
8 CANADA 1,169
9 BANGLADESH 1,080
10 VIETNAM 1,046
11 PAKISTAN 947
12 TURKEY 832
13 MEXICO 718
14 BRAZIL 691
15 MALAYSIA 687
16 INDONESIA 621
17 SAUDI ARABIA 569
18 COLOMBIA 556
19 VENEZUELA 548
20 SRI LANKA 502
21 FRANCE 480
22 SPAIN 451
23 UNITED KINGDOM 411
24 HONG KONG 404
25 RUSSIA 365
26 GHANA 362
27 THAILAND 343
28 ITALY 341
29 SINGAPORE 337
30 EGYPT 318
31 JAPAN 278
32 GREECE 276
33 GERMANY 224
34 KENYA 204
35 ECUADOR 204
36 PHILIPPINES 201
37 PERU 201
38 JAMAICA 195
39 ETHIOPIA 182
40 JORDAN 182
41 LEBANON 164
42 BAHAMAS, THE 155
43 AUSTRALIA 145
44 HONDURAS 139
45 MONGOLIA 135
46 ZIMBABWE 131
47 ISRAEL 130
48 UKRAINE 129
49 KAZAKHSTAN 115
50 LIBYA 107
51 CHILE 105
52 MOROCCO 105
53 ARGENTINA 104
54 SOUTH AFRICA 102
55 TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO 100
56 RWANDA 99
57 SWEDEN 96
58 BURMA 92
59 NETHERLANDS 89
60 CAMEROON 86
61 POLAND 85
62 NEW ZEALAND 82
63 ROMANIA 82
64 COTE D'IVOIRE 81
65 BOLIVIA 81
66 COSTA RICA 79
67 GUATEMALA 69
68 TANZANIA 69
69 ALBANIA 68
70 PANAMA 67
71 SERBIA 66
72 UGANDA 66
73 TUNISIA 64
74 EL SALVADOR 63
75 BULGARIA 61
76 DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 60
77 PORTUGAL 58
78 CONGO (KINSHASA) 54
79 IRELAND 54
80 SWITZERLAND 52
81 MAURITIUS 48
82 BELGIUM 43
83 NORWAY 41
84 DOMINICA 41
85 SUDAN 41
86 ANGOLA 40
87 HUNGARY 40
88 UZBEKISTAN 39
89 KUWAIT 38
90 CZECH REPUBLIC 38
91 SYRIA 37
92 HAITI 34
93 CROATIA 34
94 OMAN 33
95 MACAU 31
96 CAMBODIA 30
97 ZAMBIA 30
98 CYPRUS 30
99 SAINT LUCIA 30
100 AZERBAIJAN 29
101 AUSTRIA 28
102 DENMARK 28
103 SENEGAL 28
104 PARAGUAY 27
105 GEORGIA 26
106 BARBADOS 24
107 BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 24
108 ICELAND 24
109 NICARAGUA 22
110 URUGUAY 22
111 TURKMENISTAN 22
112 BELIZE 22
113 BURKINA FASO 21
114 ARMENIA 21
115 GAMBIA, THE 21
116 IRAQ 21
117 LITHUANIA 20
118 ALGERIA 20
119 YEMEN 20
120 BELARUS 19
121 WEST BANK 19
122 GUYANA 18
123 MACEDONIA 18
124 BENIN 18
125 GRENADA 18
126 FINLAND 17
127 GABON 16
128 AFGHANISTAN 16
129 KOSOVO 16
130 SWAZILAND 16
131 KYRGYZSTAN 15
132 ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA 15
133 SLOVENIA 14
134 BOTSWANA 13
135 BAHRAIN 13
136 TOGO 13
137 MOLDOVA 12
138 TAJIKISTAN 11
139 SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS 11
140 SIERRA LEONE 11
141 MOZAMBIQUE 11
142 SLOVAKIA 10
143 MALI 10
144 LATVIA 10
145 ESTONIA 10
146 MALAWI 9
147 NIGER 9
148 BURUNDI 9
149 MADAGASCAR 8
150 LIBERIA 7
151 SURINAME 7
152 BHUTAN 6
153 SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES 6
154 BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS 6
155 LESOTHO 6
156 FIJI 6
157 CONGO (BRAZZAVILLE) 5
158 GAZA STRIP 5
159 PAPUA NEW GUINEA 5
160 MAURITANIA 5
161 BRUNEI 5
162 BERMUDA 4
163 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 4
164 MONTENEGRO 4
165 CAPE VERDE 4
166 CHAD 4
167 STATELESS 4
168 NAMIBIA 3
169 GUINEA 3
170 SOUTH SUDAN 3
171 ERITREA 3
172 EQUATORIAL GUINEA 2
173 CURACAO 2
174 CAYMAN ISLANDS 2
175 SINT MAARTEN 2
176 TIMOR-LESTE 2
177 ANGUILLA 2
178 SEYCHELLES 2
179 ISLE OF MAN 2
180 QATAR 1
181 LAOS 1
182 LUXEMBOURG 1
183 CUBA 1
184 SOMALIA 1
185 TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS 1
186 MALDIVES 1
187 SAMOA 1
188 CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC 1
189 BASSAS DA INDIA 1
--- -------------------------------- --------
TOTAL 126,595
Source: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 2020 All Countries of Citizenship by Number of SEVIS Records with Authorizations to Participate in STEM OPT
Top 100 School Campuses with STEM OPT Authorizations by Active SEVIS Records, Calendar Year 2020
Top 100 School Campuses with STEM OPT Authorizations by Active SEVIS Records, Calendar Year 2020
Students Authorizations
Campus.Name School.Name Employed Issued
--- ---------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------- -------- --------------
1 The University of Texas at Dallas The University of Texas at Dallas 2,684 1,224
2 Northeastern University Northeastern University 2,515 1,328
3 University of Southern California University of Southern California 2,395 1,188
4 Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York 2,234 1,108
5 The University of Texas at Arlington The University of Texas at Arlington 2,113 779
6 Arizona State University Arizona State University 1,763 939
7 Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University 1,668 862
8 Main Campus Illinois Institute of Technology 1,495 605
9 University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign University of Illinois 1,477 767
10 University of California at Berkeley University of California at Berkeley 1,450 722
11 University of Michigan - Ann Arbor University of Michigan 1,352 684
12 San Jose State University San Jose State University 1,345 664
13 Purdue University Purdue University 1,332 724
14 New York University New York University 1,263 638
15 NYU Brooklyn New York University 1,225 524
16 State University of New York at Buffalo State University of New York at Buffalo 1,220 580
17 University of California San Diego University of California San Diego 1,196 565
18 Georgia Institute of Technology Georgia Institute of Technology 1,146 623
19 NC State University North Carolina State University 1,133 618
20 University of Florida University of Florida 1,120 389
21 New Castle Wilmington University 1,110 186
22 Texas A&M University Texas A&M University 1,085 571
23 University of California, Los Angeles University of California, Los Angeles 1,063 543
24 Texas A&M University-Kingsville Texas A&M University-Kingsville 1,037 308
25 Stevens Institute of Technology Stevens Institute of Technology 1,024 466
26 University of Pennsylvania University of Pennsylvania 996 530
27 University of Washington - Seattle University of Washington 987 498
28 New Jersey Institute of Technology New Jersey Institute of Technology 967 422
29 University of Maryland -College Park University of Maryland 962 501
30 Missouri Innovation Campus UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL MISSOURI 948 174
31 University of Illinois at Chicago University of Illinois at Chicago 947 455
32 University of South Florida (Tampa) University of South Florida 944 414
33 University of Cincinnati University of Cincinnati 825 414
34 University of Houston University of Houston-System 821 358
35 University of Minnesota, Twin Cities University of Minnesota 805 401
36 Boston University Boston University 803 407
37 Cornell University Cornell University 791 385
38 Duke University & Health Sys. Duke University, & Health Sys. 782 421
39 Syracuse University Syracuse University 760 411
40 Southern Arkansas University Southern Arkansas University 748 122
41 The George Washington University The George Washington University 716 318
42 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Massachusetts Institute of Technology 709 371
43 Stanford University Stanford University 700 384
44 Academy of Art University Academy of Art University 699 231
45 University Park The Pennsylvania State University 691 322
46 Univ. of North Carolina at Charlotte University of North Carolina at Charlotte 673 297
47 Intl Grad Admissions/Wayne State Univ Wayne State University 670 203
48 California State University Fullerton California State University Fullerton 665 275
49 University of Houston-Clear Lake University of Houston-Clear Lake 649 191
50 Harvard University Harvard University 644 327
51 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE 642 328
52 University of Texas at Austin University of Texas at Austin 607 317
53 Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester Institute of Technology 607 280
54 The Ohio State University - Columbus The Ohio State University 606 301
55 University of Bridgeport University of Bridgeport 606 154
56 Rutgers-New Brunswick/graduate Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey 585 267
57 Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology 570 262
58 Stony Brook University State University of New York at Stony Brook 564 292
59 University of Wisconsin-Madison University of Wisconsin-Madison 553 278
60 University of the Cumberlands University of the Cumberlands 546 170
61 University of California, Davis University of California, Davis 538 274
62 Campbellsville University - Louisville Campbellsville University 534 286
63 University of Illinois at Springfield University of Illinois at Springfield 534 110
64 State University of NY at Binghamton State University of New York at Binghamton 522 243
65 Northwestern University Northwestern University 518 246
66 University of Rochester University of Rochester 500 273
67 Kent Kent State University 497 79
68 PACE UNIVERSITY-NEW YORK CITY PACE UNIVERSITY 481 227
69 Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University 475 208
70 Northern Illinois University Northern Illinois University 474 179
71 University of Utah University of Utah 470 211
72 Southern Methodist University Southern Methodist University 469 196
73 Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis 462 228
74 Drexel University Drexel University 455 199
75 New England College - Henniker Campus New England College 452 44
76 Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester Polytechnic Institute 452 201
77 Texas A&M University-Commerce Texas A&M University-Commerce 448 170
78 Lamar University Lamar University 439 118
79 Fairfax George Mason University 436 179
80 The University of Chicago The University of Chicago 428 248
81 University of Pittsburgh University of Pittsburgh 416 213
82 Graduate School Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University 410 194
83 Michigan Technological University Michigan Technological University 405 220
84 University of Massachusetts Amherst University of Massachusetts Amherst 404 227
85 University of Missouri-Kansas City University of Missouri-Kansas City 399 126
86 Johns Hopkins University-Homewood Campus Johns Hopkins University-Homewood Campus 399 209
87 University of North Texas University of North Texas 397 133
88 Wright State University Wright State University 397 111
89 Indiana U Purdue U Indianapolis Indiana University 389 174
90 University of Colorado Boulder University of Colorado Boulder 388 210
91 University of Michigan University of Michigan - Dearborn 384 184
92 Oklahoma State University Oklahoma State University 378 166
93 CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, LOS ANGELES CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, LOS ANGELES 375 86
94 Charlottesville University of Virginia 369 225
95 Old Westbury Campus New York Institute of Technology 357 89
96 Georgia State University Georgia State University 357 158
97 Fordham University - Lincoln Center Fordham University 354 178
98 Yale University Yale University 352 177
99 Texas Tech University Texas Tech University 351 134
100 SANTA CLARA UNIVERSITY SANTA CLARA UNIVERSITY 350 186
--- ---------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------- -------- --------------
TOTAL 80,448 36,405
Source: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Top 100 School Campuses with STEM OPT Authorizations by Active SEVIS Records Calendar Year 2020
Links to Optional Practical Training (OPT) and Related Data
Links to Articles on Optional Practical Training (OPT) and Curricular Practical Training (CPT)
Will STEM Degrees Save The MBA? - Grace Kay, Forbes, June 17, 2019
- To gain an edge in applications and enrollments from full-time students who require F-1 visas, several key MBA programs, including Duke University (No. 14 on the Forbes Best Business Schools) and the University of Rochester (No. 37) and have begun applying STEM designations to their graduate degrees.
Should overseas students in the US consider CPT over OPT? - Y Axis, June 25, 2019
- A small number of institutions offer students the choice of using CPT. This will be cheaper and efficient in comparison with pre-completion OPT. It will also ease the OPT applications backlog for graduates, as quoted by the Study International.
The STEM Graduate System Is Broken. Here's How to Fix It. - Rachael Rosenthal, Bloomberg Opinion, March 10, 2021
- But the failings of the current program make it hard to argue against better oversight, which would keep the door open to the best and brightest while shutting it to abusers of the system. Upholding this promise to American workers — whether those just out of college or just out of a job, and those would-be Americans who play by the rules — demands no less. The truth is, the U.S. doesn't need any more race-to-the-bottom computer programmers. Only its tech behemoths and their shareholders do.
