If you’re an international student on an F-1 visa searching for opportunities in the USA, it can be helpful to identify employers that will accept Curricular Practical Training (CPT), Optional Practical Training (OPT), or provide visa sponsorship. Identifying these employers can be challenging, and many employers change their hiring practices and policies frequently.
Several tools can help you find potential employers, including Interstride and MyVisaJobs. It’s important to do independent research to discover your own unique path, but we’ve gathered a list of employers who hired Duke undergraduate students from the class of ‘23 on OPT to give you a starting point.
Important things to know before reading the list:
- This list is based on OPT application data from 2023 and may not be completely accurate as hiring practices change.
- There is no guarantee that companies on this list will be open to hiring you.
- Many companies only hire international students for select roles and teams (for example, a company may hire software engineers with OPT but not product managers).
- There are many organizations not listed here that hire international students!
- Organizations that have not previously hired international students might still be open to hiring you.
- For the most current information, conduct your own research, attend employer information sessions, and connect with alumni and recruiters who work for organizations you’re interested in.
What is OPT?
OPT, or Optional Practical Training, allows international students on an F-1 visa who have graduated from a U.S. university to work in the USA for up to one year in a job related to their major. STEM degree graduates are eligible to extend their OPT for an additional two years. For more information on OPT, visit Duke Visa Services’ website.
Employers who hired Duke international undergraduates on OPT in 2023: (in alphabetical order)
- Amazon Web Services
- Amideast
- Bain & Company
- Barclays Bank
- BlackRock
- Blur Product Development
- Boston Consulting Group
- Capvision Elite (US) Limited
- Cemvita
- Chubb
- Citibank
- Citigroup Inc.
- Cornerstone Research, Inc.
- Deutsche Bank
- Drip Capital, Inc
- Duke University
- Energy Capital Partners Management ECP
- Ernst and Young
- ESU Farm
- EY-Parthenon
- Goldman Sachs
- HRT Research LLC
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute
- IMC Chicago, LLC
- Investec USA Holdings Corp.
- Jane Street Group, LLC
- Jump Operations, LLC
- Link Logistics Real Estate
- Mastercard
- McKinsey & Company
- Meta Platforms, Inc.
- Modern Energy
- MPG Operations LLC
- Netflix
- NVIDIA Corporation
- Oliver Wyman, LLC
- Opto Investments
- Palantir Technologies Inc.
- Partners Group
- PJT Partners
- RNWBL, LLC
- Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC
- Sharma Strategy Group
- Simplehuman LLC
- Tesla, Inc.
- Thornton Tomasetti
- Uber Technologies, Inc.
- UBS
- University of Michigan
- Updata Venture Management, Inc. Updata Partners
The most common job titles of Duke international undergrads hired with OPT in 2023 were:
- Analyst
- Software Engineer
- Associate Consultant
- Business Analyst
- Research Associate
- Financial Analyst
- Quantitative Trader
Select other titles included: UX/UI Design Associate, E-Commerce Account Manager, Lab Coordinator, Intern & Product Manager
Remember, your path might not look like everyone else’s, and that’s okay! This is just a small sample of many opportunities that might be available to you in the USA. Don’t limit yourself to this list – explore your own interests and goals, and connect with employers that fascinate you. You never know what might be possible!
