150 US colleges file in court for OPT program |
An amicus brief was filed by more than 150 colleges and universities across the US, urging the DC Court of Appeals to preserve the popular Optional Practical Training (OPT) Program. The program allows international students to temporarily work in the U.S. after they have graduated to gain practical training related to their fields of study. The OPT program grants international students with F-1 visa status the ability to gain up to 12 months of real-world work experience in their field of study, either during the academic coursework or after receiving their degrees. Between 2004 and 2016, nearly 1.5 million international students and graduates of U.S. colleges and universities participated in the program. The brief cited research by NAFSA: Association of International Educators, that international students contributed $38.7 billion to the U.S. economy during the 2019-2020 academic year, supporting approximately 415 thousand jobs. The brief also noted research by Business Roundtable concluded that ending the OPT program would lead to 255 thousand fewer jobs held by the U.S- born workers. In a court case between Washington Alliance of Technology Workers v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the court is considering whether to strike down both OPT and an expansion of the program called STEM OPT. The appellants filed the initial lawsuit more than a decade ago, arguing in part that Homeland Security does not have the authority to grant work authorization to F-1 students for OPT. A federal district court judge ruled in favor of Homeland Security in November 2020, finding that the department has the legal authority to allow International students and graduates to work in the U.S. under OPT. The DC Court of Appeals is now considering an appeal of this decision by the Washington Alliance of Technology Workers. If the appeal were to succeed, both OPT and STEM OPT could end. The colleges argue in favour of keeping the OPT.
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