Indian students fear abrupt exit from US if Optional Practical Training programme is revoked
Hyderabad: A proposed Bill to end temporary work permits under the OPT programme for students is causing concern among Indian students. The OPT or Optional Practical Training (OPT) programme allows international students, having an F-1 visa, to stay and work in the United States for one year after they graduate.
While students with regular subjects get one year work permit, students who graduate in sciences, technology, engineering or mathematics, also known as STEM courses, can avail work permit for an additional two more years, making it a total of three years of additional stay in the country to work.
M. Dinesh, a consultancy manager in Hyderabad, said: “Many students use the additional time they get through OPT to not only add additional skills under their belt, but find jobs that can lead to H-1B work visas.”
If the Bill is passed in the Congress and becomes a law, the OPT can end suddenly, which could lead to students having to leave the US immediately after completing their courses.
The Institute of International Education’s (IIE) Open Doors 2024 report stated that the US has 3,31,602 enrolled Indian students in the 2023-2024 batch, with a 23.4 per cent increase from the 2022-2023 batch, which had 2,68,923 Indian students enrolled in the country.
Open Doors reports also stated that Indian students account for nearly 30 per cent of the international students in the country, next to China with 25 per cent, South Korea with four per cent and Canada with four per cent.
Many students, who are in the US pursuing higher education, are now in turmoil on whether they should visit India for the summer. Some reports stated that universities such as Columbia, Yale, and Cornell have unofficially advised international students not to leave the US for the time being.
Mohd. Asif, a Nalgonda-based student currently in Florida’s Jacksonville, said “I was about to plan my journey back home for the summer break. But after hearing the news that OPT might be removed, I am not sure. What if I am not allowed back into the country? I am very confused right now.”
Not only Indian students who are in the US, but even those who were planning to pursue higher education in the US are having mixed opinions. “I am not so sure about sending my daughter to the US anymore. The politics and laws are changing quickly, and almost all of them are against international people going there,” said Pranitha Reddy, a mother of a student who was planning on joining a tier-II university in the US.
“My daughter is in her final year of engineering, and she aspired to join a good university in the US to help her grow in the field. But, the country is not receptive to talent anymore,” she explained.
Several experts in the US commented that the Bill, if proposed to the Congress, might not be passed. According to a report by NAFSA, an association of international educators, international students currently bring a revenue of $43.8 billion to the US, and support more than three lakh jobs to the US economy only during the 2023-2024 academic year.
Experts said that by passing a bill on removing OPT, major revenue to states across the country would be cut off, and the Congress would never approve such a Bill.
