Trump Strict Student Visa Restrictions Abandononed: Will International Students Still Come to the United States?

Kit Johnson posted yesterday about the Trump administration’s abrupt change in course in the face of a lawsuit:  “The Harvard/MIT lawsuit challenging ICE’s July 6, 2020 Policy Directive and its July 7, 2020 FAQ ended today with a complete victory on the part of the universities. The government agreed to “rescind” both the policy directive and the FAQ.”  

CNN  reports that  “One person familiar with the matter told CNN the White House has felt the blowback to the proposal and that some inside the West Wing believe it was poorly conceived and executed.”  Colleges and universities across the nation supported Harvard and MIT’s effort to seek to force rescission of the policy. 

Although the policy change will benefit international students already in the United States, new international students will continue to encounter formidable barriers to entering the United States.  Colm Quinn for Foreign Policy analyzes the challenges to the enrollment of international students, before and after the latest rescinded Trump policy guidance.

Unfortunately, the mere publicity surrounding the Trump administration’s efforts to restrict foreign students coming to the United States may well reduce the number of international students this year and next.  Like it or not, the United States currently is not seen as a nation friendly to foreign students.

KJ