OPT IT Security Analyst Jobs
IT Security Analyst roles qualify for OPT work authorization under CIP codes in computer and information sciences. Most positions require a degree in cybersecurity, information systems, or a related field. STEM OPT extension eligibility gives you up to three years of authorized work, making you an attractive hire for employers building long-term security teams.
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Get Access To All JobsJob Title: Senior IT Security Compliance Analyst
Location: Lansing, MI, (Hybrid)-Onsite from day 1, two days a week
Position Type: Contract
Interview Mode: 1st round MS Teams & 2nd round In-person
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- Dental insurance
- Health insurance
- Vision insurance
This is a repost of posting ID # 166272. Please note added requirement (Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) -3+ years (Keylight preferred)).
Job responsibilities:
- Provide leadership and oversight for maintaining and updating System Security Plans (SSPs), ensuring documentation accuracy, completeness, and alignment with NIST protocol and SOM compliance standards.
- Lead and coordinate the Authority to Operate (ATO) renewal process, including planning, preparing required materials, managing timelines, and ensuring successful approval and continuous compliance for all supported applications.
- Ensure all applications maintain a valid ATO on a three‑year cycle and lead efforts to validate and maintain accurate security controls throughout each renewal period.
- Reviews and informs management on security risk assessment results and recommends corrective actions as necessary.
- Reviews, assesses risks and scope for high level security incidents. Develops new reports for management based on those collected metrics across multiple agencies: conducts trend analysis.
- Work with stakeholders to address and track Plans of Action & Milestones (POA&Ms) and other compliance requirements, ensuring timely reporting and closure.
- Provide senior‑level support across multiple business areas, MDCR, MCSC & MiLEAP, with a focus on standardized security plan updates, documentation improvements, and long‑term process consistency.
- Analyze existing compliance documentation, identify gaps or risks, and guide corrective actions to meet regulatory and organizational requirements.
- Coordinate cross‑functional collaboration with technical teams, business owners, enterprise security personnel, and project leadership to ensure all evidence and artifacts required for SSP and ATO processes are properly completed and maintained.
- Oversee review, updates, and remediation of security controls, ensuring issues are tracked, communicated, and resolved in collaboration with stakeholders.
- Lead efforts to identify procedural gaps, risks, or required updates during renewal cycles, ensuring consistent application of best practices across all supported systems.
- Contribute to enterprise security governance by providing guidance, maintaining accurate records, mentoring team members, and driving timely completion of compliance activities.
- Leads mid to high‑level Incident Responses when working to resolve incidents.
- Serves as the Incident response specialist for cyber event detection, correlation, response, and recovery.
Job Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in cyber security, Information Assurance, Business Analytics, or IT Related Field
- OR: 5 years of experience
- Preferred Advanced Degrees, Master’s in Cybersecurity, Information Assurance, Information Systems / IT Leadership, or an MBA with an IT or Security Concentration
- Educational or professional knowledge of NIST Framework and Controls a must
- Strong aptitude for written and oral communication
- Strong documentation skills
- Can collaborate cross‑functionally
Skill | Required / Desired | Required Years of experience
Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) -3+ years | Required | 3+ years
Experience providing audit evidence to comply with security standards such as NIST, PCI, HIPPA, FERPA | Required | 5 Years
Exposure to Complex IT web Applications, within the past 5 years | Required | 5 Years
Experience leading meetings and making oral and written reports | Required | 5 Years
Experience working as a liaison between different business and IT areas | Required | 5 Years
Knowledge or experience creating supporting documentation for IT system audits | Highly Desired | 2 Years
Experience with the creation of Disaster Recover Plans, Business Continuity Plans, and Incident Response Plans | Highly Desired | 2 Years
Keylight experience strong desired | Highly Desired | 1-3+ years
Flexible work from home options available.
Job Title: Senior IT Security Compliance Analyst
Location: Lansing, MI, (Hybrid)-Onsite from day 1, two days a week
Position Type: Contract
Interview Mode: 1st round MS Teams & 2nd round In-person
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- Dental insurance
- Health insurance
- Vision insurance
This is a repost of posting ID # 166272. Please note added requirement (Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) -3+ years (Keylight preferred)).
Job responsibilities:
- Provide leadership and oversight for maintaining and updating System Security Plans (SSPs), ensuring documentation accuracy, completeness, and alignment with NIST protocol and SOM compliance standards.
- Lead and coordinate the Authority to Operate (ATO) renewal process, including planning, preparing required materials, managing timelines, and ensuring successful approval and continuous compliance for all supported applications.
- Ensure all applications maintain a valid ATO on a three‑year cycle and lead efforts to validate and maintain accurate security controls throughout each renewal period.
- Reviews and informs management on security risk assessment results and recommends corrective actions as necessary.
- Reviews, assesses risks and scope for high level security incidents. Develops new reports for management based on those collected metrics across multiple agencies: conducts trend analysis.
- Work with stakeholders to address and track Plans of Action & Milestones (POA&Ms) and other compliance requirements, ensuring timely reporting and closure.
- Provide senior‑level support across multiple business areas, MDCR, MCSC & MiLEAP, with a focus on standardized security plan updates, documentation improvements, and long‑term process consistency.
- Analyze existing compliance documentation, identify gaps or risks, and guide corrective actions to meet regulatory and organizational requirements.
- Coordinate cross‑functional collaboration with technical teams, business owners, enterprise security personnel, and project leadership to ensure all evidence and artifacts required for SSP and ATO processes are properly completed and maintained.
- Oversee review, updates, and remediation of security controls, ensuring issues are tracked, communicated, and resolved in collaboration with stakeholders.
- Lead efforts to identify procedural gaps, risks, or required updates during renewal cycles, ensuring consistent application of best practices across all supported systems.
- Contribute to enterprise security governance by providing guidance, maintaining accurate records, mentoring team members, and driving timely completion of compliance activities.
- Leads mid to high‑level Incident Responses when working to resolve incidents.
- Serves as the Incident response specialist for cyber event detection, correlation, response, and recovery.
Job Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in cyber security, Information Assurance, Business Analytics, or IT Related Field
- OR: 5 years of experience
- Preferred Advanced Degrees, Master’s in Cybersecurity, Information Assurance, Information Systems / IT Leadership, or an MBA with an IT or Security Concentration
- Educational or professional knowledge of NIST Framework and Controls a must
- Strong aptitude for written and oral communication
- Strong documentation skills
- Can collaborate cross‑functionally
Skill | Required / Desired | Required Years of experience
Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) -3+ years | Required | 3+ years
Experience providing audit evidence to comply with security standards such as NIST, PCI, HIPPA, FERPA | Required | 5 Years
Exposure to Complex IT web Applications, within the past 5 years | Required | 5 Years
Experience leading meetings and making oral and written reports | Required | 5 Years
Experience working as a liaison between different business and IT areas | Required | 5 Years
Knowledge or experience creating supporting documentation for IT system audits | Highly Desired | 2 Years
Experience with the creation of Disaster Recover Plans, Business Continuity Plans, and Incident Response Plans | Highly Desired | 2 Years
Keylight experience strong desired | Highly Desired | 1-3+ years
Flexible work from home options available.
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Get Access To All JobsTips for Finding OPT Sponsorship as an IT Security Analyst
Lead with your STEM OPT timeline upfront
Tell hiring managers early that your STEM OPT gives you up to three years of authorized work. This removes the immediate H-1B visa urgency and gives employers a concrete runway to evaluate you before committing to sponsorship.
Prioritize employers with active security clearance pipelines
Defense contractors and federal IT vendors regularly hire for security analyst roles and have established visa sponsorship infrastructure. These employers understand long-term authorization timelines better than companies hiring their first international candidate.
Stack certifications that reduce employer hiring risk
CompTIA Security+, CySA+, and CEH signal job-readiness to employers who may be unfamiliar with OPT. Certified candidates are easier to justify internally when a hiring manager needs approval to sponsor a work visa down the line.
Target mid-size companies with dedicated security teams
Large enterprises have HR processes for sponsorship. Mid-size firms with five or more security headcount are often underserved and more willing to invest in retaining a strong analyst candidate through the H-1B process.
Frame your international background as a security asset
Multilingual candidates with cross-border compliance awareness can support global security operations. Positioning your background this way shifts the conversation from your visa status to the specific value you bring to a security team.
Apply before your OPT start date if possible
Many IT security roles require background checks and onboarding that take four to six weeks. Starting your job search two to three months before your OPT authorization begins ensures you can actually start on day one.
IT Security Analyst OPT: Frequently Asked Questions
Does IT Security Analyst qualify for the STEM OPT extension?
Yes, IT Security Analyst roles typically qualify for the 24-month STEM OPT extension when your degree is in a STEM-designated field such as cybersecurity, computer science, or information systems. Your university's DSO confirms eligibility based on your CIP code, not just your job title. If approved, you get up to three years of total OPT work authorization.
Do IT Security Analyst employers commonly sponsor H-1B visas?
Yes. IT Security Analyst is classified as a specialty occupation under H-1B rules because the role requires at least a bachelor's degree in a specific technical field. Employers in finance, healthcare, defense contracting, and enterprise tech sponsor this role regularly. Searching Migrate Mate filters for OPT-friendly and sponsorship-willing employers so you're not applying blind.
Can I work as an IT Security Analyst if my degree is in a related field like information systems or computer engineering?
Yes, as long as there's a logical connection between your degree field and the security analyst role, your OPT authorization covers it. USCIS and DSOs look for a reasonable relationship, not an exact match. A degree in information systems, network engineering, or computer science all support a security analyst job under OPT.
What happens to my OPT if my IT Security Analyst job ends?
You enter a 60-day unemployment grace period after your job ends. You can use this time to find a new position. OPT allows up to 90 days of cumulative unemployment during the initial 12-month authorization period, and up to 150 days during the STEM extension. Exceeding these limits violates your F-1 status, so tracking dates carefully matters.
Do IT Security Analyst roles at government contractors require a security clearance, and does that affect OPT eligibility?
Some roles require or prefer a security clearance, which is a separate federal process from your OPT work authorization. F-1 students on OPT are generally not eligible for most U.S. security clearances since clearance eligibility typically requires a green card or citizenship. However, many contractor roles in IT security do not require clearance, and those positions are fully accessible on OPT.