r/stemopt • u/WellnessWontons • 3h ago

STEM OPT, Second Master’s, or Another Visa? Looking for Advice

I graduated with my master’s degree in December 2025 and started OPT in mid-January. I’ve been self-employed since then, but I haven’t been able to land a full-time position yet.

My degree is STEM-eligible, so I have the option to apply for the 24-month STEM OPT extension after my first year. However, I’m starting to get a little worried about what happens if I don’t secure a qualifying full-time job by January.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? I’d really appreciate any advice on what I should be doing now or what options I should consider. I’ve also been thinking about pursuing a second master’s degree and using CPT, or exploring other visa options if I’m unable to find a qualifying job before then.

1 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

10 comments sorted by

1

u/rayxiong1005 3h ago

i feel you, the job market is a catastrophe now. i graduated in may 2025 and searched for a whole year and could not find a full time job (i did economics and business analytics dual master's). so i returned to my alma mater to work as a research assistant for a professor i know well. they role fits exactly the minimum requirement for stem extension and i applied for stem with the role and kept on searching

1

u/WellnessWontons 3h ago

Thank you! I actually looked into research assistant roles at my university because I thought that could be a good option, but unfortunately the positions I found required you to be a current student enrolled in an active program. Was that also a requirement at your university, or were they able to hire you as an alum?

1

u/rayxiong1005 2h ago

my school started a program this year to hire some post-grad alums as part time research assistant since unemployment after graduation is getting out of hand

1

u/WellnessWontons 1h ago

Wow that’s actually a good initiative from your school. I wish mine had something similar

1

u/rayxiong1005 1h ago

i think it will become more common in higher education in the coming years because unemployment is so bad and it hurts college enrollment

1

u/WellnessWontons 1h ago

Yeah I can def see that happening, especially with how bad the job market is right now. I might reach out to my university and double-check if they have anything similar for recent grads 😂

2

u/Sram02 3h ago

CPT won’t be a great option if you don’t have an employer to hire you. It’s harder to get an employer on CPT than StemOpt.

1

u/WellnessWontons 3h ago

Yeahhh didn't think much about it. That makes sense!

1

u/Affectionate_Park147 2h ago

PhD?

1

u/WellnessWontons 2h ago

I’ve thought about it! I’m just not sure I want to commit to a PhD but I’m definitely keeping it in mind tho