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This information is for students who may be graduating in either spring 2026 or fall 2026 to assist you with starting the search for Optional Practical Training opportunities once you graduate. If you are not graduating in the next semester, do not worry, you can still use these resources.

Graduating F-1 students interested in applying for Post-OPT work authorization are encouraged to apply early. Make sure you also submit your graduation application to ASU before the Feb. 15 deadline.  There are additional late fees if you apply after this date.

Optional Practical Training, or OPT, is an employment benefit offered through the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services that enables international students with F-1 status to gain 12 months of off-campus work experience in their field of study.

The earliest the International Students and Scholars Center will accept Post-OPT I-20 requests is February 2, 2026. You can start getting prepared for this now. We recommend reading through the Post-OPT webpage to learn more about the process.

To allow for both the ISSC and USCIS processing times, you may submit your Post-OPT I-20 eForm request to ISSC up to 97 days prior to your program completion date. 

 

• The program completion date for undergraduate students is, in most cases, the date of graduation. The spring 2026 degree conferral date is May 11, 2026.
• The program completion date for graduate students depends on your final academic requirements. Completion includes dissertation approval after defense, receipt of comprehensive exam results, or project defense. You may need to consult with your academic advisor to determine your program completion date. However, in most cases, the program completion date for graduate students is the date of graduation. The spring 2026 degree conferral date is May 11, 2026.

Note: You do not have to have a job in order to apply for OPT.

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Be advised, USCIS processing times generally increase with applications submitted later in the semester. It is common for applications to take an average of 90 days to be processed. Therefore, we recommend you apply early in the application season.

USCIS can receive applications up to 90 days before your program end date, which means ISSC can produce OPT-recommended I-20s as early as February 10, 2026. All requests are reviewed in the order in which they have been received.

Please note: Students cannot receive an OPT authorization end date more than 12 months from the end of their 60-day grace period. This means for students who apply later, their OPT may be authorized for a period of less than 12 months. Applying early in the application window increases your chances of obtaining your authorization by your requested start date and receiving OPT for the entire 12-month period.

We invite you to attend one of our upcoming OPT information webinars this spring to learn more. You may also view our pre-recorded OPT webinars on our YouTube Channel.