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Hiring international students
Hiring international students

Corporate and Strategic Partnerships
Information about hiring international students
In order to build for what’s next in the global economy, companies need the best talent available. Opening your jobs and internships to international students will significantly broaden your pool of highly skilled talent.
Obtaining permission for international students to work in the U.S. is not as difficult as many employers think. Most international students are in the U.S. on non-immigrant student visas (F-1), and these international students are eligible to accept employment under certain conditions. Johns Hopkins Carey Business School has many STEM designated programs as well, allowing students who meet certain criteria to work in the U.S. for an extended time period.
Myths and facts
Fact: False. Hiring through the OPT program costs the same as hiring a U.S. citizen. In fact, you may save money; most international students are exempt from Social Security (FICA) and Medicare tax requirements.
Fact: False. No additional work is required of the employer. All you must do is provide an offer letter, just as you would for a domestic job applicant.
Fact: False. International students with STEM-designated degrees are eligible to work in the US for up to three years post-graduation on their F-1 visas through OPT (Optional Practical Training).
FAQs
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No. Federal regulations permit the employment of international students on F-1 and J-1 visas within certain limits. These visas allow students to work in jobs related to their major field of study. F-1 students can work on “practical training.” J-1 students may work on “academic training.”
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No. The only cost to the employer hiring international students is the time and effort to interview and select the best candidate for the job. The international student office handles the paperwork involved in securing the work authorization for F-1 and J-1 students. In fact, a company may save money by hiring international students because the majority of them are exempt from Social Security (FICA) and Medicare tax requirements.
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F-1 students are eligible for CPT before completing their studies, as well as an additional 12 months of OPT, either before or following graduation, or a combination of the two. However, if they work full-time for one year or more of CPT, they are not eligible for OPT. Students with a J-1 visa are usually eligible to work up to 18 months following graduation. They may also be eligible to work part-time during their program of study. Staff in the International Student Office on campus will evaluate each student’s situation to determine the length of time for which they are eligible to work.
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No. International students must have the work authorization before they begin actual employment, but not before they are offered employment. In fact, J-1 students applying for academic training and F-1 students applying for CPT must have a written job offer in order to apply for the work authorization. Many F-1 students will be in the process of obtaining work authorization pursuant to the requirements of OPT while they are interviewing for employment. Students can give employers a reasonable estimate of when they expect to receive work authorization.
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For OPT, F-1 students receive an Employment Authorization Document, a small photo identity card that indicates the dates for which they are permitted to work. from BCIS. For CPT, F-1 students receive authorization from the school (NOT from BCIS) on page three of the student’s I-20. “No service endorsement is necessary” –per 8CFR 274a.12 (b) (6) (iii). J-1 students receive work authorization in the form of a letter issued by the RO or ARO at their institution.
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With a bit of planning ahead, an employer can hire international students to continue to work for them in the H-1B visa category for a total of six years (authorization is granted in two three-year periods). The H-1B is a temporary working visa for workers in a “specialty occupation.” The application procedure to the BCIS is straightforward. The job must meet two basic requirements:
- The salary must meet the prevailing wage as defined by the Department of Labor.
- A bachelor’s degree is a minimum normal requirement for the position.
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No. American employers are not required to document that a citizen of another country did not take a job from a qualified U.S. citizen if the non-U.S. citizen is working under a F-1, J-1 or H-1B visa. Employers must document that they did not turn down a qualified American applicant for the position only when they wish to hire foreign citizens on a permanent basis and sponsor them for a permanent resident status (green card).
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Normally, if the internship involves no form of compensation and is truly voluntary, the students may volunteer without having to do any paperwork with the BCIS. If, however, the internship provides a stipend or any compensation, students must obtain permission for practical training or academic training prior to starting their internship. Student should check with their employers to ensure that the company is allowed by law to offer unpaid internships.
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Unless exempted by a tax treaty, F-1 and J-1 students earning income under practical training are subject to applicable federal, state, and local income taxes. Information on tax treaties may be found in IRS Publication 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens, and 901, U.S. Tax Treaties.
Generally, F-1 and J-1 students are exempted from social security and Medicare tax requirements. However, if F-1 and J-1 students are considered “resident aliens” for income tax purposes, social security and Medicare taxes should be withheld. Chapter 1 of IRS Publication 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens explains how to determine the residency status of international students.
More information on social security and Medicare taxes can be found in Chapter 8 of IRS Publication 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens and in Section 940 of Social Security Administration Publication No. 65-008, Social Security Handbook.
For your reference: code of federal regulations
The Code of Federal Regulations Title 8 and Title 22 citation numbers for regulations governing practical training are as follows:
- F-1 students: 8CFR 214.2 (f) (9) & (10)
- J-1 students: 22CFR 62.23 (f)
CFR Title 8 citations governing IRCA requirements are:
- F-1 students: 8CFR 27 4a. 12(b) (6) (iii) and 8CFR 274a. 12(c) (3) (i)
- J-1 students: 8CFR 27 4a. 12 (b) (11)
Copies of the Code of Federal Regulations are available from the Superintendent of Documents in Washington DC or from the website: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/cfr/index/html
The original unmodified document was published in 2000 with a grant from NAFSA: Association of International Educators Region XII. 2004 revision by Laurie Cox, University of Southern California, and Co-Chair of SCICC (Southern California International Careers Consortium); coeditors: Lay Tuan Tan, California State University Fullerton, and SCICC Board member and Phil Hofer, University of La Verne.
Internship U.S. work authorization
Students studying in the U.S. in F-1 status may be authorized through CPT to work off-campus, in jobs or internships related to their course of study, during their academic program. These candidates are eligible to work and collect compensation. Hiring a student on F-1 status requires minimal considerations on the part of the employer. Employers need only provide an offer letter containing certain criteria on company letterhead to the student.
After graduation U.S. work authorization
International student graduates can be authorized to work in the U.S. for 12 months through OPT. There are no considerations or expenses on the part of the employer to hire someone through OPT.
Eligible graduates who have completed at STEM designated degree (full-time MBA, MS Information Systems, MS Finance, MS Business Analytics Risk Management) are eligible for an extended OPT period, under certain conditions.
For information on the STEM extension.
Practical training and F-1 students
Practical training is a legal means by which F-1 students can obtain employment in areas related to their academic field of study. Students, in general, must have completed one academic year (approximately nine months) in F-1 status and must maintain their F-1 status to be eligible for practical training. There are two types of practical training:
Optional practical training
Optional Practical Training must be authorized by the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services based on a recommendation from the designated school official in the International Student Office of the school which issued the form I-20, a government document which verifies the student’s admission to that institution. The term “optional” means that students can opt to use all or part of their total practical training allotment of a maximum of 12 months. OPT can be authorized by the BCIS, and generally students can work 12 months of practical training after completing their program of study. It should be noted that for BCIS purposes, students working anything more than 20 hours/week will be considered full-time. Students who have received OPT permission will be issued an Employment Authorization Document by the BCIS. Their name, photo and valid dates of employment are printed on the EAD. Employers should note that average processing time for BCIS to issue the EAD is two or three months, and students may begin employment only after they receive the EAD which will indicate the starting and ending dates of employment.
Curricular practical training
Curricular Practical Training may be authorized by the institution (not by BCIS) for F-1 students participating in curricular-related employment such as cooperative education, alternate work/study, practicum, and internship programs. This work experience must be deemed an integral part of an established curriculum in the student’s course of study. Authorization is written on page three of the I-20 student copy and will include the name of the company, address and zip code, beginning and ending date, and signature of the designated school official in the International Student Office. Since each institution has different policies related to curricular-related employment, students should speak to the DSO at their institution. Processing time for the authorization of CPT varies at each institution. Employers should check with the student’s institution for an approximate turnaround time.
Minimal paperwork for the employer
There is little paperwork for an employer who hires F-1 or J-1 students. All paperwork is handled by the students, the school, and the BCIS. For CPT, the school will make a notation on the students’ copy of the I-20 form indicating that CPT has been authorized and specifying the duration and place of employment. Students authorized for OPT are required to apply to BCIS (through the International Student Office of the school) for an Employment Authorization Document.
Continuing employment after the practical/academic training period
Federal regulations require that employment terminates at the conclusion of the authorized practical or academic training. However, students on an F-1 visa, or students on a J-1 visa who are not subject to a two-year home residency requirement, may continue to be employed, if they receive approval for a change in visa category-usually to H-1B. Students must have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in order to qualify for H-1B status.
Individuals may work in the U.S. for a maximum of six years under an H-1 B visa. This visa is valid only for employment with the company that petitioned for them. They must re-apply to the BCIS if they wish to change employers. As soon as the initial job offer is made, they should petition for an H-1B visa if employment is likely to extend beyond the practical training period.
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Policies
Policies

Executive Education
Executive Education Policies
Important Executive Education information and policies
Accommodations policy
Johns Hopkins University and Executive Education are committed to making all academic programs, support services, and facilities accessible to persons with disabilities. If accommodations are needed during your time with us, and you did not indicate a need on the registration form, please email us at Carey.ExecEd@jhu.edu. We ask that requests for accommodations are made on or before the registration deadline for the course.
Accreditation policy
Johns Hopkins University is not approved by the Middle States Commission for Higher Education for direct assessment credentials for awarding academic credit. Johns Hopkins Carey Business School Executive Education does issue a badge of completion upon successful completion of a course.
Audit policy
Executive Education does not allow the audit of programs. Access to course materials are only available to registered participants who successfully complete the program.
Participation policy
A certificate or badge is awarded at the end of each course or certificate program, which indicates that you have participated, engaged in the course in its entirety and completed all self-paced work that is indicated as required on our learning platform. We understand that unforeseen commitments may arise, but we require that you not miss more than two hours of an 18-hours course, one hour of a 12-hour course, and require that you are present for the full length of a 6-hour course.
Please also note that Executive Education does not permit the auditing of courses or programs. Should a participant not successfully complete a course, they will not be granted access to program materials.
Cancellation policy
We understand that schedules change, and emergencies happen. If you need to cancel or transfer your attendance, please contact us at least one week prior to the start date of the course at Carey.ExecEd@jhu.edu.
Registrants who do not cancel or transfer within the given timeframe, or do not attend the course, will not receive a refund. If you are a Johns Hopkins University employee, your department budget will be charged the full cost of tuition.
Please note that we require a 30-day cancellation or transfer notice for participants in the Academy for Women and Leadership.
Credit card refund policy
Course cancellations must be received at least one week prior to the session start date. Payments made via credit card will be automatically refunded in five-seven business days as long as the cancellation is made less than 120 days after the payment date. Credit card payments made greater than 120 days prior to cancellation are nonrefundable but may be applied toward tuition for another course.
Discounts and incentives
At the Carey Business School, supporting professional growth and advancement is part of our mission. We are pleased to offer the following scholarships and incentives to help you achieve your career goals.
1) If you are a full-time, benefits-eligible faculty or staff member who has been employed by JHU for at least 120 days, and continue in a full-time position while enrolled in courses, you are eligible to receive tuition remission.
This benefit covers only non-credit courses offered through a Continuing Education Unit of one of JHU’s academic divisions, the Berman Institute, Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, Sheridan Libraries, or Executive Programs offered through the Carey Business School. This plan is available to full-time faculty, staff, and bargaining unit members only. Retirees are not eligible for this benefit. You receive 100% remission if your department certifies the course benefits your professional development and your department is willing to pay if you do not attend the course or if you cancel with less than one week’s notice. The one-week cancellation notice is waived only for emergencies with written documentation.
There is an annual limit of 2 classes per calendar year for noncredit professional development courses taken at JHU.
For more information on this policy, please refer to the HR website.
2) Johns Hopkins Medicine and Johns Hopkins Health Systems employees receive a 40 percent tuition scholarship on all open courses, a 20 percent tuition scholarship on the Strategic Healthcare Leadership Program, the Academy for Women and Leadership and The Executive and Leadership Coaching Academy, and a 30 percent tuition scholarship on the Academy for Transformational Health Care Leadership. No additional forms or codes are necessary.
3) Carey Executive Education is committed to lifelong learning for all. As a Carey Business School or Johns Hopkins University alum, you are entitled to a 50% discount on one 2- or 3-day Executive Education course per calendar year, no matter when you graduated. This incentive excludes Academy programs. This policy is effective May 1, 2024.
Three seats per course will be reserved for alumni. Seats will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis. If you are unable to enroll in a course in which you are interested, Johns Hopkins Executive Education will work with you to accommodate your request for select another program. For more information on the specific codes to be used at registration, email us at Carey.ExecEd@jhu.edu.
We understand that schedules change, and emergencies happen. If you need to cancel or transfer your attendance, please contact us at least one week prior to the start date of the course at Carey.ExecEd@jhu.edu. If you don't cancel your registration in the given timeframe, or do not attend the course, you will not be eligible for this benefit until the following calendar year.
4) For first time participants outside of the Johns Hopkins network, we offer a one-time 20 percent tuition scholarship on two- or three-day courses.
5) Employees of registered non-profits, NGO, government, and military personnel are eligible to receive an ongoing 25 percent tuition scholarship on two- or three-day courses.
6) We also offer custom group discounts and corporate partner incentives. For more information, email us at Carey.ExecEd@jhu.edu.
Carey Business School reserves the right to adjust incentives and scholarships at any time and without prior notice.
Please note that students may not apply multiple discounts to the cost of their tuition. Only the discount with the highest value will be applied.
Inclement weather policy
If an Executive Education program needs to be canceled because of a weather emergency or other instance, the Executive Education team will communicate any changes to the schedule through email and text alerts.
Intellectual property policy
The parties to this agreement acknowledge that intellectual property is owned by Johns Hopkins University and shall not be redistributed or used for anything other than personal use. Intellectual property includes, but is not limited to, faculty developed teaching materials in electronic and print formats such as slides, lecture notes, lab exercises, web pages, audio and video recordings of the faculty, distance education materials, software, survey instruments, research and teaching data, assessment tools, and manuals.
Registration procedure
Depending on seat availability, registration for any course typically closes one week prior to scheduled course start. At that time, confirmed registrants will receive instructions on accessing the course materials through our learning management system. If you have more questions about registration, email us at Carey.ExecEd@jhu.edu for further information.
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People

Technology and Society Initiative
Director

Michael Luca, PhD
Professor, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
Michael Luca is a professor and the director of the Technology and Society Initiative at the Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School, and a faculty research fellow at the NBER. Professor Luca's research, teaching, and advisory work focuses on the design of online platforms, and on the ways in which data can inform managerial and policy decisions.
His research has been published in academic journals including the Journal of Economic Perspectives, Management Science, the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, American Economic Review: Papers and Proceeding, the American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, and the American Economic Journal: Microeconomics.
He has also written about behavioral economics and online platforms for media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, The Atlantic, Wired, and Slate. His research has been written about in a variety of media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, New Yorker, Atlantic, Economist, Washington Post, Financial Times, Guardian, Huffington Post, Harvard Business Review, Time, USA Today, Boston Globe, LA Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Fortune, Mashable, GQ, Wired, and Vox.
Professor Luca has developed and taught materials for executive education and MBA courses on business analytics, technology, behavioral economics, and leadership.
Professor Luca's current and past advisory roles include Board Member of the National Association for Business Economics (NABE), Academic Advisory Board Member of the Behavioural Insights Team, Advisory Board Member for the OECD Digital for SMEs Global Initiative, and Advisory Board Member for the CNBC Technology Executive Council.
Faculty Affiliates

Ritu Agarwal, PhD
Wm. Polk Carey Distinguished Professor, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
Ritu Agarwal is the Wm. Polk Carey Distinguished Professor of Information Systems and Health at the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, and the founding co-director of the Center for Digital Health and Artificial Intelligence (CDHAI). She is an expert in the strategic use of information technology, digital transformation of health care, health analytics, and artificial intelligence applications in health.
Professor Agarwal’s research seeks to apply advanced digital technologies to health care practice and delivery, and to unravel the underlying behavioral, psychological, and social processes that enable and constrain successful health care interventions. She has been a pioneer in research related to digital technologies and health among scholars in leading business schools, and has devoted her research efforts towards improving health care quality, promoting equity and access, and reducing costs. She has published over 100 articles in leading business and health care journals such as Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Information Systems Research, MIS Quarterly, Management Science, Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, and Health Affairs.
Agarwal has testified before the National Committee on Health and Vital Statistics and the U.S. Department of Health on her research related to digital technologies and health. She is an appointed member of the Federal Advisory Council for the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the NIH and has served on the NIH Working Group for Integration of Behavioral and Social Science Research.

Filipe Campante, PhD
Bloomberg Distinguished Professor, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
Filipe Campante is a Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Distinguished Professor with appointments at Carey Business School and the School of Advanced International Studies. At SAIS, he serves as the vice dean for Faculty Affairs and Research. He is interested in political economy, development economics, and urban/regional issues. His research looks at what constrains politicians and policymakers beyond formal checks and balances: cultural norms, institutions, media, and political protest. In particular, it has focused on how these informal constraints are affected by the spatial distribution of people and economic activity, by access to information, by the evolution of cultural norms, and by the structure of the economy. He tries to answer these aggregate questions — what happens to countries or states or cities — with an applied microeconomic approach.
Campante’s work has appeared in leading academic journals such as the American Economic Review and the Quarterly Journal of Economics, among others. It has also received multiple mentions in outlets such as the New York Times, Science, NPR, Washington Post, The Economist, Los Angeles Times, Foreign Affairs, and Politico, among others. Campante is a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), and was assistant and associate professor of Public Policy at Harvard from 2007 until he joined Johns Hopkins University in 2018.

Andrew Ching, PhD
Professor, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
Andrew Ching, PhD (University of Minnesota), is a full professor of economics at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, and serves in a joint appointment with the Bloomberg School of Public Health. Prior to joining Johns Hopkins University, he was a full professor of marketing at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management. He also had faculty appointment at Ohio State University, and visiting professor appointments at UCLA, Cornell University, University of Wisconsin-Madison, National University of Singapore, HKUST and Chinese University of Hong Kong (Distinguished Visiting Professor). In addition, he was a visiting scholar at Harvard University, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, and Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. He has previously served as an associate editor for Management Science, guest associate editor for Marketing Science and Journal of Marketing Research, and a member of editorial boards for Marketing Science. He is currently serving as a member of editorial boards for Journal of Marketing Research and International Journal of Research in Marketing. His research focuses on developing new empirical structural models and estimation methods to understand the forward-looking, strategic, learning and bounded rational behavior of consumers and firms. He has applied these techniques to study the demand for prescription drugs, nursing homes, new technology adoption decisions, choice of payment methods, information spillover, late-mover advantages, video games demand, stockpiling, online support groups, and integrated marketing communication. His latest research focuses on modeling how consumers and firms adaptively learn in a dynamic world using AI and digital tools.

Itay Fainmesser, PhD
Associate Professor, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
Itay Fainmesser is a professor at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, and studies how social networks and social media affect and are affected by market activities and market rules. His current work studies the pricing of network goods, the role of intermediaries in markets, the shape and evolution of trust networks, the market for online influence, and user privacy in online platforms. His work was published in top economics and management journals such as The Review of Economic Studies, Management Science, and The Journal of Economic Theory.

Gordon Gao, PhD
Professor, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
Guodong (Gordon) Gao, PhD, MBA, is a professor at the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School and co-director of the Center for Digital Health and AI (CDHAI). Gao’s research interests include AI in health care, AI fairness, mHealth, and quality transparency. His research has been funded by NSF, NIH and AHRQ. Gao is dedicated to advancing AI for Health Equity education, especially for the under-resourced population and regions. He led several initiatives in the NIH-funded AIM-AHEAD program, such as the Professional Development Program, the Program for AI Readiness, and the Program for American Indian Higher Education Consortium. His work has been published at leading medical and business journals.

Wesley W. Koo, PhD
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
Wesley W. Koo is an assistant professor in the Management & Organization area at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. His research examines the relations between business, technology, and society. It focuses on the governance of platform ecosystems and the effects of modern technology on business and society. He has studied rural entrepreneurs' ability to navigate changing algorithms and how platform governance affects the relations between domestic workers and their employers. His research has been published in top-tier academic journals and disseminated by leading media outlets. He serves on the editorial boards at Organization Science and Strategic Management Journal. Wesley received his PhD at Stanford University, where his research was supported by the Stanford Technology Ventures Program, Stanford SEED, Accel Partners, Strategic Management Society, and Alibaba Group. Prior to Stanford, Wesley was a tech entrepreneur and received dual degrees in Environmental Engineering and Management from MIT.

Julia Levine, PhD
Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
Julia Levine is an assistant professor at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. Her research interests lie at the intersection of marketing and public policy. She studies how people's past choices impact their current choices, both in the case of brand loyalty and category-level consumption. She examines these dynamics in policy-relevant contexts, including demand for addictive goods and nutritional inequality.