OPT IT Security Engineer Jobs
IT Security Engineer jobs are among the more OPT-friendly roles in tech because employers filing H-1B visa sponsorships for security engineers consistently rank among the highest in USCIS data. Your 12-month OPT period (or 24-month STEM extension if your degree is in computer science, information security, or a related CIP-designated field) gives you a realistic runway to secure sponsorship.
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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.
See all 33+ OPT IT Security Engineer Jobs
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Get Access To All JobsTips for Finding OPT Sponsorship as an IT Security Engineer
Target companies with active security clearance programs
Defense contractors and federal IT vendors like Booz Allen Hamilton and Leidos sponsor heavily for security engineers. These employers have established immigration pipelines and are accustomed to navigating OPT timelines alongside clearance investigation processes.
Lead with certifications employers actually care about
CISSP, Security+, CEH, and OSCP signal technical credibility faster than a resume summary can. Hiring managers in security roles use certifications as a first filter, so front-loading them on your resume increases the odds of getting past automated screening.
Apply before your OPT start date if possible
Security engineering hiring cycles often run six to ten weeks. Starting your search two to three months before OPT begins gives employers enough runway to hire you before authorization lapses and gives you buffer time if an offer requires background verification.
Be explicit about your STEM OPT extension eligibility
If your degree qualifies, tell employers upfront that your work authorization extends to 36 months total. This materially changes the sponsorship calculus for many hiring managers who would otherwise pass on OPT candidates with only 12 months remaining.
Focus on employers who have previously sponsored security roles
Past H-1B visa filings for IT Security Engineer or Information Security Analyst job titles are publicly searchable through DOL disclosure data. Targeting employers with a demonstrated sponsorship history dramatically increases your chance of a positive response.
Tailor your application to the specific security domain
Cloud security, application security, SOC analysis, and penetration testing are treated as distinct specializations by many employers. Aligning your resume keywords and cover letter to the exact domain in the job posting improves both ATS performance and interview relevance.
IT Security Engineer OPT: Frequently Asked Questions
Can I work as an IT Security Engineer on OPT?
Yes, as long as your job is directly related to your degree field. IT Security Engineer roles typically qualify under computer science, information technology, cybersecurity, and related CIP-designated programs. Your DSO can confirm whether your specific degree and the role description are sufficiently related before you accept an offer.
Does an IT Security Engineer role qualify for the STEM OPT extension?
It depends on your degree, not the job title. If your bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree is in a STEM-designated field such as computer science, information security, or electrical engineering, and your employer enrolls in the E-Verify program, you can apply for the 24-month STEM extension. The role itself does not need to be certified separately.
How do I find IT Security Engineer jobs that sponsor OPT students?
Migrate Mate is built specifically for F-1 OPT students and surfaces IT Security Engineer roles from employers with verified sponsorship histories. Rather than filtering through thousands of listings that never respond to OPT candidates, Migrate Mate focuses your search on employers who are genuinely open to work authorization support.
What should I tell employers about my OPT status when applying for security roles?
Be straightforward and include your OPT end date and STEM extension eligibility in your application or first communication. For security-sensitive roles, employers also appreciate knowing upfront that OPT does not conflict with most clearance eligibility determinations, since clearance suitability is assessed independently of immigration status.
Are IT Security Engineer jobs harder to get on OPT than other tech roles?
Not inherently. Demand for security engineers is consistently high and the talent pool is smaller than for software development roles, which works in your favor. The main friction point is that some roles with federal government clients have citizenship requirements. Filtering for private-sector or commercial employers largely removes that constraint.