How Trump's 2025 Immigration Policies Are Reshaping American Higher Education

On January 20, 2025, officials swore Donald Trump into office as the 47th president of the United States. In this position, he is actively implementing rules and policies, impacting all aspects of the lives of Americans. The 2025 Trump administration's immigration policies are undermining the stability and appeal of U.S. higher education by accelerating deportations, revoking student visas, and eroding academic freedom, which threaten the global reputation of American universities and the diverse intellectual communities they foster.  

The U.S. is a hotspot for international students all over the world. From more than 210 other countries, 1,126,690 students traveled to the U.S. to continue their higher education. These students chose America due to various reasons. One is that the U.S. has the space to accept many  students compared to other countries. Another is that the U.S. is actively helping international students gain their visas; in 2023, the U.S. issued 446,000 student visas. The relationship between the country and international students is a mutually beneficial situation as international students are able to pursue higher education at great institutions while the country gains valuable workers. In 2023, international students contributed $40 billion to the U.S. economy and held 368,000 jobs in total. 

Despite the great benefits of having international students, the current Trump administration is targeting these students, and the reasons as to why they are targeted are unclear. The administration is threatening these students by terminating their visas and legal statuses. People with  a nonimmigrant F-1 academic-student visa or a J-1 exchange-visitor visa are the target . Foreigners who attend school full time use the F-1 visa, and foreign scholars and researchers who take part in exchange programs use the J-1 visa.

Regardless of American institutions sponsoring these visas, which then go through background checks by ICE, the Trump administration already changed the status of more than 1,000 students and graduates at over 170 higher education institutions. Initially, these students were targeted due to participating in protests on campus, but it has now evolved into any type of legal infractions, including traffic violations and multiple year-old misdemeanors. Doğukan Günaydın, a Turkish student at the University of Minnesota, was recently arrested due to his 2023 drunk driving conviction. Mahmoud Khalil, a green-card holding student at Columbia University, was arrested by ICE due to pro-Palestine protests. The reasons for termination of visas and legal statuses are not consistent or clear, showing a flaw in the process. 

These seemingly random arrests of students are creating an atmosphere of confusion and fear in American institutions. Some institutions are unsure of how to respond. An anonymous president of a small institution stated: “As an institution, we believe in honoring and obeying the law. It is challenging to do that when you do not quite understand exactly what laws are being applied,” he said. “We feel like all we can do is wait and see, and pray.” On the contrary, other institutions are using their power to speak up against the policies, protecting their international students. Harvard University refused to share information on visa holders with the Trump administration. This act led to a series of consequences: freezing of $2.3 billion in funding and threats of being exempt from taxes. Harvard is not alone; Columbia University, Princeton University, Brown University, Cornell University, and Northwestern University are also receiving these threats. 

The current actions of the 2025 Trump administration are having a significant impact on international students and American higher education institutions. The cancellation of visas, detention of students, and imposition of instruction from the government have brought uncertainty and anxiety to those involved. These ongoing circumstances question the following: What are the American education system’s values? If academic freedom and inclusivity are significant values of American institutions, they must be able to defend those and fight for the rights of international students as advancements occur.

Citations

Danner, Chas. “Why Is Trump Targeting so Many International Students?” Intelligencer, 15 Apr. 2025, nymag.com/intelligencer/article/trump-targeting-international-student-visa-sevis-termination-universities.html.

“IIE Open Doors / International Students.” IIE Open Doors / International Students, 13 Nov. 2023, opendoorsdata.org/annual-release/international-students/.

“International Students Studying in the United States: Trends and Impacts.” Boundless, www.boundless.com/research/international-students-studying-in-the-united-states-trends-and-impacts/.

Knox, Liam. “Trump Admin Broadens Scope of Student Visa Terminations.” Inside Higher Ed | Higher Education News, Events and Jobs, 2025, www.insidehighered.com/news/global/international-students-us/2025/04/08/trump-admin-broadens-scope-student-visa.

Singh, Kanishka. “Trump Administration Says Harvard May Lose Ability to Enroll Foreign Students.” Reuters, 17 Apr. 2025, www.reuters.com/world/us/us-homeland-security-chief-cancels-two-grants-harvard-university-2025-04-17/.

Yam, Kimmy. “Why the Trump Administration Is Revoking International Student Visas.” NBC News, 10 Apr. 2025, www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/international-students-revoked-visas-reasons-why-rcna200313.

Meet The Author

Katie Kang