In recent months, the Trump administration has utilised financial pressure and legal agreements to force colleges to cut their enrollment of overseas students.
At the core of this effort is a contentious arrangement with Columbia University, which was forced through after the White House withheld nearly $400 million in research funding. The deal contains a little-publicised condition requiring Columbia to "decrease financial dependence on international student enrolment," which might soon become a national precedent.
There is a wider plan underlying these measures. Led by White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, the administration appears to be committed to reducing American academia's global footprint through forceful settlements, visa restrictions, and regulatory overhauls, guided solely by ideology rather than economic insight, The Times of India reports.
Stephen Miller is a top Trump administration official whose career has been distinguished by an aggressive demolition of immigration channels. His concentration has switched to universities.
According to sources, Miller and strategist May Mailman have led private conversations with college administrators around the country, using pending investigations to obtain policy concessions, including reducing international student enrollment, reports The Times of India.
The administration's strategy is not confined to enrolment limitations. It is also removing the infrastructure that enables overseas students to remain and work after graduation. The head of US Citizenship and Immigration Services, Joseph Edlow, has hinted at the elimination of the Optional Practical Training (OPT) and STEM OPT extensions.
Meanwhile, proposed reforms to the H-1B visa process will penalise new graduates by requiring salary-based selection, thereby excluding overseas students at the start of their careers.
The economic implications of this policy change are startling. According to the NAFSA: Association of International Educators, international students contributed over $44 billion to the US economy and supported more than 378,000 jobs during the 2023-24 school year. A projected 30 per cent to 40 per cent decline in new foreign enrolment might result in a considerable reduction in university financing and the local economy.
Meanwhile, other countries, such as Australia, China, Japan, Spain, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand, are slowly positioning themselves as alternatives to the USA for international students, increasing their international student enrollments and easing their visa restrictions for them.