{"id":385272,"date":"2025-11-17T13:25:11","date_gmt":"2025-11-17T13:25:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/385272\/"},"modified":"2025-11-17T13:25:11","modified_gmt":"2025-11-17T13:25:11","slug":"foreign-students-flock-to-us-colleges-despite-visa-crackdown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/385272\/","title":{"rendered":"Foreign students flock to US colleges despite visa crackdown"},"content":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 Foreign students enrolled at U.S. colleges in strong numbers this fall despite fears that a Trump administration crackdown<\/a> would trigger a nosedive, yet there are signs of turbulence as fewer new, first-time students<\/a> arrived from other countries, according to a new report.<\/p>\n

Overall, U.S. campuses saw a 1% decrease in international enrollment this fall compared with last year, according to a survey from the Institute of International Education. But that figure is propped up by large numbers of students who stayed in the U.S. for temporary work after graduating. The number of new students entering the United States for the first time fell by 17%, the sharpest decrease since the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n

Some universities are seeing backslides that have punched big holes<\/a> in tuition revenue, but overall the falloff is less severe than some industry groups had forecast. Researchers credit colleges for helping students navigate visa issues through the summer.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think colleges and universities did absolutely everything in their power to advocate to get these students to the United States,\u201d said Mirka Martel, head of research, evaluation and learning for the institute.<\/p>\n

At DePaul University, a Catholic university in Chicago, the number of international graduate students fell by almost 62% this fall, a driving factor in recent spending cuts. The university president blamed student visa troubles and declining interest to study in the U.S., calling it a \u201cmassive\u201d disruption.<\/p>\n

Overall, nearly 60% of colleges reported a decrease in new foreign students this fall, the survey found, while 30% saw increases and others held even. More than 800 schools responded to the survey, which offers an early look at trends before full data is released next year.<\/p>\n

Trump administration has pressed for reductions in foreign enrollment<\/p>\n

The Trump administration has sought to reduce America\u2019s reliance on foreign students. The White House is pushing colleges to cap enrollment of foreign students<\/a> and enroll more from the U.S. In June, the State Department began screening visa applications more closely<\/a> after temporarily halting all interviews.<\/p>\n

Visa processing has continued to lag in some countries, including India, the largest source of America\u2019s foreign students. Education firms have reported that future college students are now showing decreased interest in the U.S. and more in Europe and Asia. While international enrollment remained relatively steady, there are concerns about its sustainability. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere are warning signs for future years, and I\u2019m really concerned about what this portends for fall \u201926 and \u201927,\u201d said Clay Harmon, the executive director of AIRC: The Association of International Enrollment Management, which represents colleges and recruitment agencies.<\/p>\n

Foreign students make up about 6% of America\u2019s college students but they play an outsize role in campus budgets. Most pay higher tuition rates and don\u2019t get financial aid, effectively subsidizing U.S. students. Their numbers are far higher at elite campuses<\/a>, often making up a quarter or more of the student body.<\/p>\n

International students at the graduate level saw the biggest backslide this fall, with a 12% drop. That was mostly offset by rising numbers of students participating in Optional Practical Training<\/a>, which allows students to stay in the U.S. for temporary work after graduating. Undergraduate numbers ticked up slightly.<\/p>\n

Graduate students make up the biggest share of foreign students in the U.S., often coming for science, math and business programs. Numbers had already started leveling off last year after a post-pandemic surge, but the recent turmoil appears to have accelerated the downturn. In the survey, colleges that saw decreases cite factors including visa issues and other travel restrictions<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Drops lead to budget cuts at some colleges<\/p>\n

Many smaller and regional colleges have reported downswings, especially among master\u2019s and doctoral students.<\/p>\n

In a recent campus address, the president of the University at Albany said a decrease in foreign graduate students was having a \u201cdisproportionate impact\u201d on the school\u2019s budget. At Kent State University in Ohio, falling international numbers required an additional $4 million in cuts to balance the budget, the president wrote in an October update.<\/p>\n

Even the biggest public universities weren\u2019t immune. The University of Illinois\u2019 flagship campus saw its international numbers dip, fueled by a 6% drop in graduate students. At the University of Michigan, foreign graduate enrollment fell by a similar share. Arizona State University, which has more foreign students than any other public campus, saw its overall numbers fall by 3%.<\/p>\n

Universities are offering wider flexibility to students who couldn\u2019t make it to campus this fall, according to the survey. Almost three-quarters are allowing foreign students to defer their enrollment to the spring term, and more than half are allowing deferrals until fall 2026.<\/p>\n

Colleges in other countries, meanwhile, have sought to capitalize on the disruption, said Joann Ng Hartmann, senior impact officer at NAFSA, an agency that promotes international education. In Germany, Canada and some other countries, colleges are ramping up efforts to recruit students who might be rethinking college in the U.S.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThey have friendlier policies, and students realize that,\u201d she said. \u201cThey have friendlier messaging for students that welcomes them.\u201d<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

This story has been updated to correct the name of DePaul University.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

The Associated Press\u2019 education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP\u2019s standards<\/a> for working with philanthropies, a list<\/a> of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 Foreign students enrolled at U.S. colleges in strong numbers this fall despite fears that a…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":385273,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[20184,184114,16720,69,407,57,1567,184115,50,1573,80,61,67,370,132,68,93],"class_list":{"0":"post-385272","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-states","8":"category-us","9":"tag-albany","10":"tag-clay-harmon","11":"tag-colleges-and-universities","12":"tag-donald-trump","13":"tag-education","14":"tag-general-news","15":"tag-india","16":"tag-joann-ng-hartmann","17":"tag-news","18":"tag-ohio","19":"tag-politics","20":"tag-u-s-news","21":"tag-united-states","22":"tag-united-states-government","23":"tag-unitedstates","24":"tag-us","25":"tag-washington-news"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115565269071034440","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/385272","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=385272"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/385272\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/385273"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=385272"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=385272"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=385272"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}