Hello,
I was a Civil Engineering student who graduated last year and had his OPT card issued on July 2020. I found a job within the 90 days to find a job. However, it didn't last long. The manager there failed to find new projects I could work on for Covid situation, and then on some day he abruptly came to me and said I could no longer be in the office. It was devastating to my dreams and years of investment and saving to work in the US. I have saved money and worked during college just to save it for the rent and billings during the time after college to find a job... And it took me 5 months to find that job.
After I got laid off from that job, I kept researching for another one in my field (as it supposed to be according to the OPT rules) along side with studying for the FE exam. I passed the FE exam recently, and the EIT certificate is on its way, but there's no job until now, and it's past the 90 days to find a job, nor could I find one so far! My OPT is going to end soon at the end of June, and I sold everything I have except the car. Now I work for those apps Doordash and Grubhub along with a casual volunteering for our local mosque.
By the chance, I heard during our school OPT orientation that if you want to keep the 90 days going in your account you should volunteer in your field. But, I live in a small town that has 2 engineering companies, and none of them accepted my volunteering either. Plus, recently I read on the internet that volunteering for OPT students can be anywhere, like mosques, churches, humanity centers... etc. Is that true?
Now, I'm hanging in between having my stuff packed up to get ready to leave the country and just randomly applying to Engineer-in-Training jobs on Indeed, but I lost hope. I'm just making money on those delivery apps just to make up enough money for if there's going to be loss when I sell my car, so I don't leave the country with nothing in my hand!
Is there anyone having a similar situation like mine? I don't like to be called an illegal immigrant when I came here with my money and dream to work here someday but the situation didn't help. I see the police hovering around the small town all the time, and I shake whenever I see them although my driver's license is still valid and my car registration is up-to-date. But I imagine a scenario or lucid dream when the police stop me and look up my information, then they immediately take me by force to the immigration department to depart me without my laptop, car, TV, and other things at my apartment... I'm really scared about it, and I don't live well or secure the past 4 months after I got laid off! Please Enlighten me with your replies, and sorry for this boring story!
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source https://www.reddit.com/r/immigration/comments/nu9b77/opt_student_and_police_please_enlighten_me_with/