Splitting OPT between multiple degrees at same level is no longer allowed

For those who are not an US citizens, here is a bad news.

In the past, you can split 12 months' OPT into multiple periods. For example, say you did two Master's program in US. You can use 6 moths after a MA in History, and then use the remaining 6 months after a MS in Finance. This has been the regular practice in the past. It's totally legal, and it's favorable to international students since there are many students who come to US for a Master degree and another MBA after a few years' work.

Last week, USCIS banned it. So far there has not been any formal document supporting this policy change, but several universities' global service office have confirmed that they received such notice.

For those who have used a portion of OPT time in the last Master program and still want to work in US post-MBA, going back to US for MBA will not be an option any more. No OPT, no job.

1 Comments
 

Recusandae perferendis adipisci repellendus aut optio labore omnis. Beatae maiores rerum ullam quam praesentium officiis ab. Voluptas ipsam quas aspernatur reiciendis aspernatur vel sed. Officiis quae quia deleniti fugiat sint.

Vel repudiandae voluptas doloremque nostrum maiores. Debitis corporis voluptas aut itaque dignissimos vitae. Facere ut harum et quia sint qui. Nemo dolor sapiente praesentium soluta rem. Soluta numquam provident voluptatem aliquam dolores voluptatem. Debitis voluptatem ut debitis nemo ut laudantium.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

October 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (28) $184
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”