Student: erkuai9526
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In 2019, my H1b got RFE rejected😭I ended up seeking a Day 1 CPT university to continue my studies and work, and waiting for h1b drawing next year.I visited a few Day 1 CPT Universities in Los Angeles back then, and did lots of research, ended up choosing Westcliff University for my CPT school.
By far, September 2020, I had completed one academic year at Westcliff University and should study for another year (My H1b did not get selected this year). The school changed a lot in 2020. In 2020, Westcliff University merged with a well-known law school in Los Angeles, Westcliff expand their campus for their business school and launched new STEM concentrations for the School of Engineering and Technology, DBA Doctor of Business Administration, and MBA. After graduating, students can apply for STEM OPT Extension.
In this article, I want to share how to choose Day 1 CPT University, programs and my own experience of studying in Westcliff, including school's curriculum, majors, academic workload, teachers, and CPT policy. I want to help students who are interested in Day 1 CPT to overcome the difficulties and achieving their goals.
1. Overview of Westcliff University
Westcliff University's main campus is located in Irvine, rated as the safest city in the United States and the most livable city in California. In addition, the other campus is located in Cerritos, which is closer to downtown Los Angeles, and the third campus is located in Miami, Florida.
Westcliff University is accredited by Western University Alliance (WASC Senior College and University Commission), the highest level certification for business schools in the United States (Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs), which is the highest level of certification for business school teaching and research institutions in the United States. There are only 15 in the United States. Business schools pass this accreditation and the national certification (Council for Higher Education Accreditation). Although Westcliff University does not participate in the US News rankings, it has obtained the national and regional certifications that can be obtained.
The teaching quality of Westcliff University's are relatively strong, with a teacher-student ratio of 1 to 8, and courses are taught in small classes. Although many students have already obtained H1b, but since the school's teaching quality is pretty good, getting an MBA or DBA degree will also benefit their future development, most of the students chose to continue finish their degree after their H1b got selected.
The school has more than 11 sports, including basketball, football, water polo, baseball, swimming, and other competitive events, and has begun participating in regional leagues. From time to time, Westcliff University play games with brother schools, like La Verne University, Westcliff University also send invitation to students to attend.
2. Programs in Westcliff University
Westcliff University has four schools: the School of Business, the School of Engineering, the School of Education, and the School of Law.
The College of Business:
Offers three-degree programs, Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA), Master of Business Administration (MBA), and Doctor of Business Administration (DBA), as well as Certificate Programs.The College of Technology & Engineering:
Offers Bachelor of Science Information Technology (BSIT), Master of Science Information Technology (MSIT), Master of Science Computer Science (MSCS), Master of Science Engineering Management (MSEM), and other degree programs.The School of Education offers Bachelor of Education (BAEd):
MA Teaching English as a Second Language MA TESOL, language training programs, and certificate programs. Established in 1966, Western State Legislative College merged with Westcliff University in August 2019, becoming the school's fourth college.The School of Law:
Offers Juris Doctor Degree (J.D.) and certificate programs.
3. Day 1 CPT
The school can approve the CPT work permit on the first day of the semesterl, and the school will send an email reminder to renew CPT before the end of each semester. CPT is continuous during the school year so that you can work 365 days per year with CPT. For students whose OPT is about to expire, choose a school start date that is closest to the date before the OPT expires, work with OPT before admission, and work with CPT after admission, except that there will be a gap within 2-3 days of transferring to SEVIS, which can be seamlessly connected Switch from OPT work permit to the CPT work permit.
Regarding CPT, it is also important to note that the work content must be related to the course content. For example, suppose a student is a programmer. In that case, it is more reasonable to choose MS Computer Science than General MBA because the course content of MS Computer Science is more related to the work content of programmers than the General MBA. Of course, if there is a Master's degree, it is also possible to choose the Computer Science concentration of an MBA. Remember that you need school approval to pass CPT before you can start work. However, suppose you begin work without CPT approval, you may be considered by USCIS during the H1b application and future green card application stages if the applicant still needs to maintain legal student status.
Application Process for Day 1 CPT
Before applying, students need to have an offer letter from the company. It is necessary to register for CPT courses in advance and submit an application, submit the CPT application form, the Offer Letter, and the CPT Agreement signed by the school and the employer. Wait for the school to approve the CPT and get a new I-20.
Note that you need to wait for the effective date of the CPT before starting work. Before the end of each semester, check the school's email and apply before the deadline to renew the CPT for the next semester.
4. Class schedule
The school has 3 terms each year, and each term lasts 4 months. The course adopts a hybrid format, with 2 courses per semester (3 credits per course, a total of 6 credits, CPT counts as extra credit), one online and one onsite, in the hybrid format, in line with the Immigration Bureau's regulations for F-1 international students visa
If you missed the application ddl, contact me immediately, I know the advisor of admission office and will try my best to help you expedited the application process.
Students who live within a 100-mile radius of the school attend school weekly, Monday through Friday, from 6:30pm to 8:30pm.
Students who live outside the 100-mile radius of the school attend school monthly. Classes are from Saturday 9am to Saturday 4pm.
Students living in the Bay Area or out of state, if there is a direct flight to John Wayne Airport Irvine Airport, it is recommended to apply for the program on the main campus. The main campus is only 2 miles away from the airport, and there are multiple direct flights every day from cities such as Dallas, San Francisco, and Seattle.
(I have Indian classmates who take a direct flight from the Bay Area to Irvine at noon on Friday, I take the flight during lunch time without delaying work. I arrive at the hotel in the afternoon and work remotely. On Saturday morning, I bring my luggage to the classroom, and then fly back after class in the afternoon to bay area.)
5. On-site Frequency
Students who live within a 100-mile radius of the school attend school weekly, Monday through Friday, from 6:30pm to 8:30pm.
Students who live outside the 100-mile radius of the school attend school monthly. Classes are from Saturday 9am to Saturday 4pm.
For students living in the Bay Area or out of state, if there is a direct flight to John Wayne Airport Irvine Airport, applying for the program on the main campus is recommended. The main campus is only 2 miles from the airport, and there are multiple direct flights daily from cities such as Dallas, San Francisco, and Seattle. For example, I have Indian classmates who take a direct flight from the Bay Area to Irvine at noon on Friday. I took the flight during lunchtime without delaying work. I arrive at the hotel in the afternoon and work remotely. I bring my luggage to the classroom on Saturday morning and then fly back after class in the afternoon bay area.
6. Tuition Fee(School Year 2022-2023)
Weekly Master's program tuition is $760/credit, 36 credits are required to complete the program, and the total tuition is $27,360.
Monthly Master's program tuition is $815/credit, 36 credits are required to complete the program, and the total tuition is $29,340
Weekly PhD program tuition is $815/credit, 60 credits are required to complete the program, total tuition is $48,900.
Monthly PhD program tuition is $895/credit, 60 credits are required to complete the program, total tuition is $53,700
Note: Students who applying for CPT is additional credit each semester, 7 credits need to be completed in each semester, and the tuition fee is calculated based on 7 credits
7. Fee waived code:
Get the Scholarship Referral Code, fill in the Referral information of the online application form as follows, you will automatically get the $2,400 GoElite Scholarship!
Referred By: Goelite, Inc.
Referred Email: info@goelite.us
After enrolling in this way, the amount corresponding to the scholarship will be automatically deducted from your tuition bill, and there is no need to apply additionally.
In addition, you can apply for other scholarships after admission!
Distinguished scholarships (applied at the time of admission, for outstanding students with potential, GPA3.5 or above, up to $10,000)
Scholarships for Outstanding Achievement Recognition (SOAR, for outstanding students, GPA3.5 or above, up to $5,000)
Building Leaders for Equity, Inclusion, and Diversity (BLEND, for international students, both new and old students can apply, GPA3.25 or above, up to $2500)
Warrior Scholarships (to help students with financial difficulties, GPA 3.0 or above, up to $2,500)
There are 6 application opportunities for the scholarship a year, and you can apply for different scholarships repeatedly. After the application is approved, the scholarship will be distributed to students six times within a year (Distinguished scholarships are divided into three times), and after the scholarship is received, you can continue to apply.
8. Academic workload
Regarding the schoolwork workload, I personally don’t feel that it is very stressful. Some homework may take 3-4 hours, but on average, 1-2 hours per week can complete the homework. (If you intend to learn the fundamental skills, read the reading materials required by the teacher carefully, and check a lot of materials for each assignment is another thing.)
Before every Thursday, you need to publish a short article of 250 words on a topic on the discussion board , you need to reply to an article published by a classmate before every week. The rest of the homework due every Sunday, you can an schedule example as see below
Week 1 Discussion Board 250 words
Week 2 Discussion Board 250 words, Professional Assignment (2-3 pages short paper)
Week 3 Discussion Board 250 words
Week 4 Discussion Board 250 words, Comprehensive Assignment (4-6 pages long paper)
Week 5 Discussion Board 250 words
Week 6 Discussion Board 250 words Professional Assignment (2-3 pages short paper)
Week 7 Discussion Board 250 words Quiz 20-30 multiple choice questions, more than 1 hour test time, easy to find answers, relatively simple
Week 8 Discussion Board 250 words, Comprehensive Assignment (4-6 pages long paper), Presentation
In general, the 1st, 3rd, and 5th weeks are relatively easy, the homework is done in about 30 minutes, the 2nd and 6th weeks need to write a short paper, which can be completed in 1-2 hours, and the 7th week is also relatively easy, quiz It's very simple. The 4th and 8th weeks are quite stressful, because you have to write a long paper, and it may take 3 or 4 hours to complete the paper. Don't be too nervous about PPT, as long as you finish the lecture, it is generally not a big problem.
Regarding academic pressure and attendance requirements, no matter how busy or tired you are at full-time work, as an international student, you must strictly abide by the school’s rules and regulations, complete your homework on time, and abide by academic integrity, especially those who participate in the school’s requirements and must attend the school. All course content and maintain a GPA above 3.0. The school requires students to maintain a GPA above 3.0 to renew a new CPT.
Because the school's onsite attendance is relatively low compare to other, the attendance in class is usually more strict. In my first class, I saw that the syllabus said that there are 8 classes per week, and you can only miss two classes at most. If you miss three or more onsite classes, the class will fail. I once skip an onsite class, and received a warning email from the academic advisor the next day, telling me that I had missed a class.
9. MBA Program Introduction:
MBA has the following 14 Concentrations to choose from:
General Management
Marketing
Financial Management
International Business
Organizational Management
Entrepreneurship
Healthcare Management/Administration
E-Business Management
Supply Chain Management
Health Informatics and Analysis*
Business Statistics and Data Analytics*
Digital Communications and Multimedia*
Information Technology*
Project Management*
Remarks: The major of ** is STEM concentration, and you can apply for 24-month OPT Extension after graduation.
The MBA program requires the completion of 12 courses (36 credits), including the following 9 core courses and 3 Concentration-related professional courses:
BUS 500 Organizational Leadership – 3 credit hours
BUS 505 Managerial Economics – 3 credit hours
BUS 510 Marketing Management – 3 credit hours
BUS 525 Strategic Management in a Globalized Economy – 3 credit hours
BUS 530 Managing Information Systems & Technology – 3 credit hours
BUS 535 Managerial Accounting – 3 credit hours
BUS 540 Organizational Behavior – 3 credit hours
BUS 550 Financial Management – 3 credit hours
BUS 557 Applied Methods Capstone – 3 credit hours
The first academic year is all MBA foundation courses. Concentration is selected at the end of the course, and 3 concentration-related elective courses are taken from the second academic year. When submitting the application form at the beginning, if you haven’t figured out which concentration to choose, it’s fine, just choose one or leave it blank, because the concentration will be determined at the end of the first year.
10. DBA Program Introduction
The Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) program I studied required a total of 60 credits to complete, including 48 credits for core courses and 12 credits for specialized courses. If the applicant has taken three courses of Managerial Economics, Managerial Accounting, and Financial Management at the graduate level, they can apply for waiver of the above three prerequisite courses.
The standard length of the program is 3 years. If the 3-year course is doubled, the amount of coursework and attendance is doubled, and the fastest graduation can be 1.5 years. After completing one academic year of courses (3 consecutive semesters), you can apply for a semester off, and you can also apply for an extension when writing your graduation thesis. Generally, it takes 3-4 years to complete the project. It should be noted that it is possible to continue working with CPT during the vacation period and during the application for extension.
DBA Program have the following Concentrations:
Business Intelligence and Data Analytics(STEM)
Strategic Leadership in the 21st Century
Information Technology Management(STEM)
Applied Computer Science(STEM)
Taking the DBA's Business Intelligence and Data Analytics as an example, students are required to complete the following core and specialized courses:
First-Year Course Schedule (19.5 credits, 6 courses)
Course Code Course Title Credits
BUS 700 Leadership and Creative Solutions Implementation
BUS 705 Management Strategy, Planning and Implementation
BUS 710 Financial Risk in Business 3
BUS 720 Marketing Strategy & Consumer Behavior 3
RES 711 Research Methods I 4.5
RES 721 Doctoral Prospectus 3
Second year course schedule (19.5 credits, 6 courses)
Course Code Course Title Credits
BUS XXX 1st Concentration Course 3
BUS 731 Global Economics & Business Initiatives 3
BUS 732 Corporate Social Responsibility in Organizational Development 3
BUS XXX 2nd Concentration Course 3
RES 741 Research Methods II 4.5
RES 751 Doctoral Literature Review/Candidacy Review 3
Third-Year Course Schedule (19.5 credits, 6 courses)
Course Code Course Title Credits
BUS XXX 3rd Concentration Course 3
BUS XXX 4th Concentration Course 3
BUS 900 Dissertation Final Project Block 1 3
BUS 901 Dissertation Final Project Block 2/Preliminary Defense 4.5
BUS 902 Dissertation Final Project Block 3 3
BUS 903 Dissertation Final Project Block 4/Final Defense 4.5
Prerequisite Course Requirements (May not required for all students)
Course Code Course Title Credits
BUS 505 Managerial Economics 3
BUS 535 Managerial Accounting 3
BUS 550 Financial Management 3
Taking Business Intelligence and Data Analytics (STEM) Track as an example, after completing the following four professional courses, you meet the requirements of STEM majors, and you can apply for a 24-month OPT Extension after graduation.
Course Code Course Name Credits
BUS 800 Foundations in Analytics for Executives 3
BUS 801 BUS 801 BI, Analytics, & Decision Support 3
BUS 802 Time Series & Predictive Analysis for Business 3
BUS 803 Artificial Intelligence and Prescriptive Analytics 3
11. How to choose the right program?
How should I choose between a Master's program and a doctoral DBA program? Generally speaking, if a student chooses to continue his/her study after completing an undergraduate degree, he/ she should choose master's degree;
If he/ she wants to continue his studies after graduating from a master's degree, he/ she should consider Doctoral degree or an MBA. But if a student has completed a Master's degree and is pursuing one or more Master's degrees, immigration officials may be aware of it when reviewing the materials.
Some students majored in Computer Science as their first graduate student, but failed to win the H1b lottery for continually 3 years after graduation, then went to another Computer Science major to work as CPT, and they all worked for the same employer, so they continued to study for the sake of work. The situation is more obvious, and it seems suspicion to immigration officials. Although the student has CPT permission and maintains legal status during the work period in this case, it is easy to cause an RFE supplement to explain why he is studying a CS major when the H1b is approved. This situation should be avoided.
If you choose the Computer Science concentration of the MBA or DBA program, it is more reasonable. First of all, MBA programs in the United States generally require applicants to have several years of work experience to apply. It is very common to apply for MBA programs after completing the first master's work for a period of time.
Secondly, MBA is a "one-size-fits-all" program. Most of the basic business courses such as Leadership, Effective Communication, Business Ethics and other courses can be applied to most jobs, and these courses are directly related to work. It is also a good choice to pursue a doctorate degree. It makes perfect sense to first graduate with a master's degree and then pursue a doctorate.
Unlike the research-oriented Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) who needs to explore unknown areas and create new knowledge, the more important task of the practical doctor is to apply the most cutting-edge knowledge to the work. For example, the Doctor of Business (DBA) Doctor of Business Administration is a practical doctorate, and the program itself requires applicants to have certain work experience.
A common practice doctor is Doctor of Medicine (MD), a doctor of medicine. After completing the required credits and dissertation, medical students also need to complete 3 years of residency practice in the hospital to obtain the doctorate degree. Doctor of Education (EdD) is also available to school administrators who have many years of work experience in the field of education and need to continue their studies during the work period.
12. Application process
Submit online application form
Complete a remote interview
Upload personal application information, including:
I-20
Passport Passport
Visa Visa
Resume Resume
Personal Statement Statement of Purpose
I-20 Release Form
Transcript Official Transcript
Certificate of deposit (within the last three months, a bank statement with a balance of more than 2.8W or an equivalent RMB deposit certificate is acceptable)
The application fee is $30, add me erkuai945 to use the latest Promo Code to get the application fee waived
After receiving the admission letter, confirm the transfer time of SEVIS with the teacher, and fill in the SEVIS transfer form to transfer out of SEVIS from the original school to Westcliff University.
13. Frequently Asked Questions about CPT School
SEVIS related:
What is the 150 Day rule?
If a student transfers out of SEVIS from the original school to the new school, the start date of the new school needs to be within 150 days of the completion date of the original school program or the end date of the OPT, otherwise only a new I-20 can be issued.
What is the 60 Day Rule?
Students transferring from the original school to the new school need to obtain an acceptance letter from the new school within 60 days (grace period) of the completion date of the original program school or the end date of the OPT, and apply for transfer through SEVIS. After VIS has exceeded 60 days, SEVIS will be automatically inactive. If you re-submit the SEVIS transfer form, you will not be able to transfer to a new school. You can only get an I-20 from the school, and you need to activate the I-20 for admission when you leave the country.
If the school Initial I-20, should I transfer status domestically or leave the country to activate the I-20?
If the F-1 student visa is still within the validity period, the F-1 visa of the original school can be used to make a round trip on the same day, and then exit Mexico or Canada (a Canadian visa is required) and then re-enter to activate the I-20 of the new school. If the student visa has expired and the new school needs to enroll as soon as possible, you can choose to make an appointment online to sign an F-1 student visa at the embassy of Mexico or Canada (a Canadian visa is required), and it will take 2-3 days to get the visa and then enter the country. If the student visa has expired and you are not in a hurry to enroll, you can apply for a change of status in China.
Can I transfer to another school after admission?
Yes.
Can I enroll during the semester?
Yes, there is one entry opportunity in the middle of each semester and 6 entry opportunities per year.
Can the application fee be waived?
Yes, check the application fee waived code above.
Work-related:
Which well-known companies support Day-1 CPT for H1b?
Affirm, Adobe, Bloomberg, Barclays, BOA, Box, Citi, Doordash, Google, IBM, JP Morgan, Matterport, Microsoft, Okta, Walmartlabs, WeWork, and more.
Can I change companies during CPT?
Yes, you can communicate with the school in advance to submit the form and update the SEVP portal employer information within 10 days.
When should I submit the CPT application?
Generally, after getting the admission letter from the school, the SEVIS conversion is successful, and it can be submitted 2-3 weeks before the start of the semester. If the submission time is missed, there will be one more CPT submission opportunity during the semester. Westcliff University has 6 CPT submissions per year.
What if I don't win the H1b lottery? Can I keep reading? How many years can I study?
If the applicant chooses a 2-year master program to complete the program, there will be 2 chances to draw lots. If you have not been selected twice, you can apply for a doctoral program (DBA) after graduating from a master’s degree. You can complete the program in 4 years, and there are 4 lottery opportunities (you can apply for one semester of vacation each academic year, during which CPT has been working continuously, and the doctoral degree is in the 3rd year. You can apply for an extension of graduation), if you are not selected in 6 draws, see if you can start applying for a green card
Is there a gap between OPT and CPT? Can you work all the time?
The OPT expires the day after SEVIS is transferred out of your original school, after which you can start working with your new school CPT work permit. SEVIS generally takes 2-3 working days to convert successfully, so there will be 2-3 days of work permit gap and cannot work (there is no gap for student status), please take 2-3 days off.
If I win H1b, can I not read it? What if I drop out of CPT school?
You can drop out of school after being selected for H1b. After the lottery, it is generally recommended to continue to finish the course of the semester and get the transcript until the H1b becomes effective. If you want to apply for suspension of studies, you can communicate with the school academic advisor.
Learning related:
Can I return home during CPT? Is there a summer vacation?
You can go back to your home country. It is generally recommended to go back to your home country during vacation. There is a semester vacation for each academic year. During the vacation, students can choose CPT to continue working or take a vacation.
Can the same degree OPT be used only once?
Yes, there are one OPT and one OPT Extension (STEM major) opportunity at the undergraduate, master, and doctoral levels.
How is the quality of school teaching?
Generally speaking, the teaching quality of schools that have passed the highest level of regional and national certification is generally excellent. The teacher-student ratio of Westcliff University is 1:8. The professors pay more attention to each student, and there are many opportunities to communicate directly with the professors.
Wishing you all the best of luck!
Updated in 2022:
Looking back at the post I wrote two years ago, I’m still emotional. In the past two years, I have also successfully landed in the third round of h1b lottery in the fifth draw (no RFE). I have also started my education and entrepreneurial career.
Westcliff West Cliff University itself has also ushered in many changes. Not only has the admissions process been optimized, the requirements for recommendation letters, documents, etc., have been eliminated, but it has also become more and more comfortable in handling RFEs encountered when students have H1B and green cards. A few weeks ago, I chatted with an advisor who was familiar with WU before. Unfortunately, most students in the two years (2021 and 2022) did not get RFE when applying for H1B, even if about 95% of the unfortunate students who got RFE finally passed the test.
Many of my classmates who referred to Westcliff also gave me feedback that the school has been compelling in helping students with RFE these years. Although I was studying at WU and had a lot of complaints about it, I am still very grateful to the school. After all, if I hadn’t gone to this school at the time, I might not have stayed in the United States now, nor would I have been drawn later. The story of going ashore.
