Severe Economic Employment
Severe Economic Hardship is caused by unforeseen circumstances beyond the student’s control. For a list of examples, see below:
- Sudden loss of financial aid or on-campus employment without fault on the part of the student;
- Substantial fluctuations in the value of currency or exchange rate;
- Substantial increases in tuition and/or cost of living;
- Unexpected changes in the financial condition of the student’s source of support, medical bills, or other substantial and unexpected expenses.
Eligibility Criteria:
- Valid F-1 Status.
- Good Academic Standing.
- Must have been in F-1 status for at least one academic year.
- Must demonstrate that on-campus employment is either unavailable or insufficient to meet the financial needs.
- Must clearly document that the economic hardship is due to unforeseen circumstances that occurred after obtaining F-1 status.
- Available to any eligible F-1 student from any country.
Important information:
- Employment is limited to a combined 20 hours both on-campus and off-campus when school is in session. Full-time employment is allowed during official university break (summer, winter).
- Unlike CPT/OPT/STEM OPT, employment doesn’t have to be related to the field of study.
- Granted in one year intervals and requires re-application for renewal.
- Just like OPT/STEM OPT, the ISO will recommend Economic Hardship on your I-20 and then you need to submit an application to USCIS. Must wait to begin work until the physical EAD card has arrived.
- Eligibility code is (c)(3)(iii)
- Must provide a detailed support letter as well as supporting documentation to justify the need for Economic Hardship.
Please send an email to iso
gwu [dot] edu (iso[at]gwu[dot]edu) to begin this process.