Master Out and OPT Application
This content was automatically generated by gpt-4o-mini (No human review). The original post is in Chinese.
Master Out refers to dropping out during a PhD program and graduating with a master’s degree. I heard about this phenomenon during my undergraduate studies, and I also heard that some students who are not interested in pursuing a PhD apply for the degree just to achieve a Master Out. Since self-funding a master’s degree is very expensive, at UCSD NanoE, obtaining a master’s degree costs about $10,000 in tuition per semester, plus around $2,000 a month for living expenses, totaling around $60,000 for a four-semester master’s program. However, if you are a PhD student and Master Out, the expenses are zero because the PhD program includes tuition and scholarships.
However, I did not apply for the PhD program with the intention of Master Out. When I first joined the UCSD NanoEngineering department, I felt that I would spend five years in the PhD program. Although I knew I didn’t have a passionate interest in research, I didn’t feel that I hated research or was unsuitable for it. I spent five years in my undergraduate studies and had been in two or three research groups, all focused on computational physics. I had no industrial internship experience after starting university (except for a one-month internship at Guokr’s MOOC Academy before university). The atmosphere at my university was such that about 60% of graduates continued to graduate school, so it felt natural for me to continue down the research path without considering employment. Although I knew that I would most likely go into industry rather than academia after completing my PhD, I always felt that the PhD experience would be a good transition, allowing me to better prepare for working in the U.S. after five years. After all, English is not my native language, and I have no understanding of the industry.
Master Out Feasibility
UCSD has a good policy that allows students to obtain a master’s degree in the same field as their doctoral studies, as long as they complete certain course requirements and pass an exam or defense. This way, if a student drops out of the PhD program, they can still earn a master’s degree, which can help them find a job more easily. I learned about this policy when I enrolled; the NanoE master’s degree requires the completion of 9 courses (5 required courses and 4 electives), along with passing the Comprehensive Exam (which assesses the content of the 5 required courses, similar to taking 5 final exams at once). By the end of my first year in the PhD program, I had already completed 7 exams and passed the Comprehensive Exam with high scores, so I only needed to take two more courses to obtain my master’s degree.
In my second year of the PhD program, I encountered funding issues and considered changing advisors. I also thought about the possibility of needing to Master Out, so I felt that I shouldn’t obtain my MS degree too early. I found out that if you earn an MS degree and do not immediately apply for OPT, and then quit the PhD program after a few semesters, some schools’ International Centers may not allow you to apply for OPT. Therefore, I was cautious about course selection in my second year, opting to take only one course per semester to delay obtaining my MS degree. While I was switching labs, I communicated with the department’s coordinator to understand the requirements for the master’s degree. The coordinator informed me that after completing 9 courses, I could request the department to postpone the issuance of my master’s degree; it wasn’t mandatory to award the degree immediately after finishing the courses. So, I asked the department not to issue my master’s degree right away, and I planned to contact them in advance when I decided to withdraw, so they could promptly submit my master’s degree application to the graduate school. I felt that the department gave me a lot of freedom in this regard.
In addition to actively keeping in touch with the department coordinator to inform her about my potential lab change and possible PhD withdrawal, I also needed to communicate with the school’s International Center (UCSD’s is ISPO). The main goal was to confirm that it was possible to apply for OPT to work after dropping out of the PhD program with an MS degree. If I couldn’t obtain an MS degree after leaving the PhD program, I wouldn’t be able to apply for OPT, which would mean I couldn’t work legally in the U.S. Even with an MS degree, it wasn’t guaranteed that I could apply for OPT, so I needed to check with ISPO about any restrictions. After repeatedly confirming the feasibility of applying for OPT after Master Out, this became my backup plan.
Initially, when I was considering changing labs, I still wanted to stay at UCSD to continue my PhD; I never thought about dropping out. I really liked the environment at UC San Diego. However, during one of my counseling sessions, the therapist asked me what the worst-case scenario would be and what my plans were. I said that if the second lab didn’t work out either, I would choose to graduate with a master’s degree and then look for a job. If I couldn’t find work, the worst-case scenario would be to switch to F2 status. This had always been my last resort because my husband was pursuing his PhD at UCI, so I could consider staying in the U.S. on an F2 visa without having to return to my home country due to unemployment. Of course, staying on an F2 visa would be difficult since F2 status does not allow for legal employment, and relying solely on one person’s PhD stipend would be quite tight financially. But I think it was at that moment that I began to consider the worst outcomes and think about my backup options. The exit strategy I established was to give it one last try; if the new lab turned out to be good, I probably wouldn’t drop out. However, since the new advisor still wasn’t very supportive of me (in terms of funding), I began looking for internships.
Thoughts on Dropping Out of a PhD Program
It is feasible to drop out of a PhD program and obtain a master’s degree, but one obvious issue is that you are not as competitive as master’s students. Many master’s students, even though they are self-funded, start preparing for summer internships in the fall of their first year. Their goal is clear: a master’s degree is aimed at securing better job opportunities, so many do not spend much time on coursework but instead focus on job hunting. They practice interview questions, revise their resumes, submit applications, and attend interviews. It wasn’t until March of this year, after leaving my second lab and deciding to drop out to find a job, that I started looking for summer internships. Before that, I only had research experience. In contrast, those MS students began their job search as early as August or September of last year, and many had already secured internships by March. From March to May, I spent about two months applying and interviewed with 4-5 companies but did not land a summer internship. I then gave up and started working on the PI Review website, planning to continue my job search after the site launched. On one hand, I was quite lost and uncertain about what kind of job I wanted. On the other hand, I found practicing interview questions tedious and felt that continuing to search for a summer internship in May was too late. I thought it would be better to do something meaningful, and creating a website could enhance my competitiveness. As a result, after the website launched in late July, a full-time company I had previously interviewed with contacted me again, and I went through the onsite final interview, ultimately receiving a full-time offer within two weeks.
When it comes to dropping out of a PhD program, I initially felt it was quite a pity. During my first interviews, I tried to hide the fact that I had dropped out of my PhD program and just said I had a master’s degree. However, I later found it uncomfortable to be evasive; many of my experiences on my resume were research-related, and it was hard to explain why my graduation timeline was flexible. Eventually, after creating the PI Review website, I came to terms with my decision. I felt that I had contributed something to the community; even though I did not obtain a PhD, I left behind a bit of my work. In subsequent interviews, I no longer deliberately concealed the fact that I had dropped out of my PhD program.
Speaking of dropping out, I actually had a year in high school when I frequently considered quitting school, and I never expected that eight years later, I would really have the opportunity to drop out of school. During high school, I was very dissatisfied with the education system, which is why I wanted to drop out. For more details, you can refer to this article: “Did MOOCs Intensify the Idea of Dropping Out?”. At that time, I lacked the courage, but I am also grateful that I did not drop out back then. Although the education at the University of Science and Technology is not perfect, it did provide me with a relatively good platform, many opportunities, and excellent alumni resources. I feel that UCSD lacks the sense of being an alma mater; after studying there for two years, I spent only half a year on campus, and the remaining year and a half was spent working from home due to the pandemic. The first year was mainly spent attending classes and doing some research (I published a paper, and when I left my group, I actually had another project that could have started writing a paper). In the following half year, I switched groups and worked on a new project (which I thought was going quite well and was at a stage where I could consider writing a paper, still a first-author paper). The last half year was spent job hunting, being a teaching assistant, and working on the website. Especially during the group switch, I often complained that UCSD NanoE’s support for PhD students was terrible (indeed, many PhD students lacked funding), which was disappointing and hardly lived up to the reputation of a world-class university.
Master Out Specific Steps
For OPT application, refer to this webpage. In short, there are four steps:
- Determine your program end date
- Submit Change of Program Level I-20/DS-2019 Request, iPortal
- Submit F-1 Optional Practical Training (OPT) I-20 Request, iPortal
- File OPT application online
I got stuck on the first step for a long time.
Actual Timeline of Execution
I joined a new lab in Winter 2021, left the second lab in Spring 2021, and started looking for a job full-time. During this time, I worked as a teaching assistant to ease my financial burden; I indeed paid for one semester of out-of-state tuition, which was $5000. I planned to intern in Summer 2021 and graduate in Fall 2021. Of course, if I could find a full-time job earlier, I could graduate sooner. I thought that 10 months from March to December would be enough time to find a job (now I think 3 months is sufficient; 10 months is too much). As a result, I received an offer in early August, so I decided to graduate early. Initially, I didn’t know that I could graduate in the summer session; I thought if I missed the spring graduation, I could only graduate in the fall. Later, I figured out that I could also graduate during the summer (summer session I or summer session II), which requires enrolling in at least one credit of summer courses and paying the corresponding tuition (around $500, which I had to pay again).
Regarding graduation and the OPT application, it’s essential to frequently communicate with the department’s administrative assistant and ISPO. From the decision to graduate in the summer to submitting the OPT application, it took me two weeks, and that was with me emailing them almost every day to urge them. I also participated in ISPO’s VIRTUAL DROP-IN ADVISING Zoom Meeting for consultation.
Here is my timeline for reference:
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Jul 30 | Officially emailed the administrative assistant about my intention to graduate in the summer |
| Aug 6 | The department opened a Nano299 course for me to register for one credit, which took the department a week to arrange |
| Aug 6 | Submitted Change of Program Level I-20/DS-2019 Request on iPortal; before this, I was still a PhD student |
| Aug 9 | Change of Program Level I-20/DS-2019 Request is approved; waited 3 days, officially became a Master student |
| Aug 9 | Suddenly realized my husband was still my dependent, submitted Remove dependent, Updated I-20/DS-2019 Request on iPortal |
| Aug 12 | Updated I-20/DS-2019 Request is approved; waited 3 days |
| Aug 12 | Officially submitted Optional Practical Training (OPT) I-20 Request on iPortal |
| Aug 13 | Optional Practical Training (OPT) I-20 Request is approved; only waited 1 day |
| Aug 13 | Filed OPT application online |
USCIS Website Status Update
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Aug 13 | File OPT application online * |
| Aug 14 | Received Date |
| Sep 25 | Approved |
| Sep 29 | Card Was Produced |
| Sep 30 | Received email from USCIS: We have taken an action on your case * |
| Oct 3 | Received EAD Card |
I originally thought the OPT application would take at least 3 months, but I surprisingly received the EAD card in just 50 days. The timeline above shows that I submitted my application on August 13, but the system indicates it was received on August 14. Then, I received an email on September 30, and when I checked, it showed that it was approved on September 25. However, I remember logging into the USCIS website around September 25, and there was no update. From the time I received the email notification to when I got the EAD card, it was only a short 4 days, and I received the card smoothly.
When I submitted my OPT application, I was facing the issue of needing to move. I moved out of my old home on September 11, and the move-in date for my new home was September 7. At that time, I was faced with the question of what address to write. I considered using my friend’s address but ultimately abandoned that idea. Considering that the OPT application would take at least 2 to 3 months, I thought it would be safer to use my new home address. So initially, I wrote my new home as the Mailing address on USCIS, but the Physical address was my old home. After I moved, I went back to the USCIS website and changed the Physical address to my new home. Fortunately, there were no issues with the mailing.
