To study in the United States, you will have to obtain a student visa. M and F visas are the two types of non-immigrant visas that are issued to foreign students who wish to study in the United States. F-1 visas will allow foreign students to enter into the United States as full-time students and such students who enter into the country may enroll in authorized universities, seminaries, elementary schools or in some other language training programs. M-1 visas are granted to students who enroll in nonacademic or in vocational programs.
F-1 students cannot work off-campus, during the first academic year and after the first academic year, they will become eligible for off-campus employment. Nevertheless, such F-1 students can accept on-campus employment and work for 20 hours per week and they may work for around 40 hours during holidays, during the first academic year. But their work places must be affiliated to their schools and they can work in school book stores or cafeterias and they need to make sure that they are not employed illegally. They must also check with the employers or International Student Advisors, before they start working.
Only after being authorized by the Designated School Official(DSO), an F-1 student can accept off-campus employment and work outside the school. However, an F-1 student will be permitted to work off-campus only if he proves that he suffers extreme economic hardship and in such cases USCIS will permit him to work off-campus, for around 20 hours per week and full time during holidays. To become eligible for off-campus employment, the F-1 student must meet few requirements and must have a good academic record and must have been in valid F-1 status for one academic year. At the same time, his off-campus employment must be related to his education and F-1 visa holders must not work in hotels, gas stations or liquor stores and students who engage in such employment will be deported from the country.
