Internships and CPT for International Students

DO YOUR RESEARCH

Read the information about CPT on the ISSS website.

COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR EMPLOYER

Ask your internship employer to complete the Employment Verification Form with the information listed on the ISSS website. Also obtain information clear information about salary and other benefits, such as whether the company will pay tuition and insurance for the duration of the internship. Remember that internships frequently lead to jobs, so acquire this information in a highly professional manner.

COMMUNICATE WITH THE INTERNATIONAL OFFICE

Schedule a meeting with the ISSS. They will be able to assist you with CPT recommendations. Because CPT affects visa status, the department cannot give a recommendation of whether or not you are eligible for CPT or which path for CPT you should take.

CLARIFY FINANCIAL SUPPORT AND INSURANCE

Discuss with your BME supervisor how tuition, stipend, and insurance will be paid for while you are on CPT. Know your requirements for maintaining your immigration status (https://global.utexas.edu/isss/immigration/f-1/student-status ); if you have any questions, please discuss this with your ISSS advisor. The department will need an email that outlines your course enrollment choices during the internship, your plan for health care, and who will be responsible for these costs. Note that internships taken for individual professional development are not required to be supported financially as financial support is contingent on job performance. This email should be approved by the advisor if the advisor is supporting the student financially during the internship, and by the student.

TUITION

Continuing international students are not required to enroll in summer courses, unless you plan to graduate in the summer. Keep in mind that if you are not employed as a 20-hour TA/GRA, you will not be eligible for in-state tuition waivers. If you do enroll for credits, you will need to discuss the cost of out-of-state tuition with your supervisor. Read more about the Resident Tuition Entitlement.

HEALTH INSURANCE

You are required to have health insurance coverage that complies with the provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Waiving the Student Health Insurance Plan ). You may need to switch to the UT Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP; website: https://utexas.myahpcare.com/ ). If you are no longer eligible for UT Select insurance during your internship, your ISSS insurance waiver will be voided and the cost of SHIP will be added back to their spring tuition and fee bill. If your internship will include health insurance, you can complete a new waiver. The deadline for the summer ISSS insurance waiver is June 6.

Students not enrolled in coursework are still eligible for SHIP; this policy is likely to change in the future so that if you are not enrolled in coursework, you will not be eligible for SHIP. You can explore alternative health insurance options explained by the University Health Services here: https://healthyhorns.utexas.edu/charges.html#options .

Some insurance policies through employers are eligible for a waiver of the UT Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP). Here are the guidelines for students hoping to waive the cost of the UT plan for the summer semester:

Plan must be compliant with the Affordable Care Act
Coverage dates must be for the entirety of the summer semester: 5/16/20XX – 8/15/20XX. Usually students are not able to waive because their internship start date isn’t until after 6/1, so this is important to keep in mind.
Coinsurance cannot exceed 25%
Deductible can be higher than $500 as long as all other requirements are met
Students who are eligible should complete and submit the “Student with U.S. Employer” application on our website at Waiving the Student Health Insurance Plan .
Please adhere to the deadlines to submit a waiver

SELECT REGISTRATION OPTION

Decide which course registration option you will be using for CPT. The ISSS advisor will advise you on the option that best fits your individual situation.

Texas CHE does not have an internship degree requirement, so you cannot use “Degree Requirement” as the course registration option.
Only occasionally do students participate in a University-affiliated Co-op; you should know whether this is your situation and discuss further with the ISSS advisor.
Most frequently Texas CHE students either select “Course Registration” or “Thesis/Dissertation Requirements.”
- Course registration is for students that have an internship in their major and are receiving academic credit for the work that they are doing. If this is the option that the ISSS advisor recommends, you will need to register for BME 396. This course is offered in summer and fall semesters, not over the summer. Keep in mind the continuous registration requirement for graduate students that have moved into candidacy (https://gradschool.utexas.edu/academics/policies/continuous-registration ). BME 396 is only offered in the spring and the fall, not the summer. You may take BME 396 in the fall for a summer internship, pending discussion with the ISSS advisor. Note that BME 396 may be used to fulfill coursework requirements.
- Thesis/Dissertation requirements is for students enrolled in dissertation credits doing work that is directly required for the completion of their dissertation. An example would be that the student is locating data at an off-site location that has equipment that UT does not have for their data collection. The student is using this data to write their dissertation and the student would not be able to complete their dissertation research without this data. In the meantime, the off-site location also happens to pay them for the work that they are doing there. This would be a situation in which a student could receive dissertation or thesis credit for their CPT work.

COMMUNICATE WITH THE DEPARTMENT

Once you have met with the ISSS advisor and discussed funding support with your BME supervisor, include the following information in a single email:

Your full name and EID
Your entry semester and year
Your supervisor’s full name
The name, location, and dates of the internship
The name of the ISSS advisor with whom you met and the date of your meeting
The CPT course registration option (Research Internship, Thesis/Dissertation, or Co-op)

The course abbreviation, course number, and full title for the course in which you are registering for the internship, (BME 396 - Research Internship, BME _99W, or other Co-op course), if applicable
The semester and year the credit will be earned (be specific about the semester you are enrolling the course, not necessarily the term in which you do the internship), if applicable
If enrolling in dissertation credit for the internship, briefly explain how the work is a necessary and required part of your dissertation in complete sentences
Your plan for tuition, if applicable
Your plan for support, if applicable
Your plan for health care, and who will be responsible for these costs, if applicable
Also attach to the email a PDF of your offer letter

Email this information to the following people:

The Graduate Adviser (Dr. Ed Castillo, edward.castillo@utexas.edu)
The Graduate Program Administrator (Jenny Kondo, bme-grad@engr.utexas.edu)
Your supervisor and, if applicable, your co-supervisor
The department's HR team in charge of your work appointments and tuition payments (bme-hr@utexas.edu)
The ISSS advisor with whom you met to discuss CPT

The Graduate Adviser will approve the CPT plan via email, replying to all people involved. At this point you can log into myIO through the International Office to begin the online CPT form.