Can I be hired on a 1099? What does this mean?

A "1099" is a tax document for an Independent Contractor who is not an employee.  By definition, an intern cannot be an independent contractor, as they must be closely supervised and in a learning environment where they apply the knowledge learned in class.  An independent contractor is expected to be fully skilled and experienced, able to produce the work with minimal to no supervision, using their own equipment.  While due to COVID-19, companies may be asking interns to work remotely, under normal circumstances the interns would be working at the employer site.  An intern should be hired by the company and issued a W-2 form at the end of the year.

Note: An F1 visa student must be hired as a temporary employee to be eligible for CPT.  "Full-time" regular employment may be accepted to start after graduation on OPT.