Trump-Era Policies Lead to Decline in International Students at U.S. Universities

A considerable number of Iranian students will be unable to attend American universities this fall, while students from Afghanistan are facing serious challenges reaching their campuses.

Even students from China and India—the two leading sources of international students in the United States—have encountered a complex array of new hurdles created by recent U.S. government policies aimed at restricting or deterring foreign entrants.

With intensified scrutiny of student visa applications and travel bans implemented by the previous administration, enrollment numbers for newly admitted international students at U.S. universities are expected to fall substantially.

Last year, approximately one million international students were enrolled in U.S. institutions, according to official government statistics. Enrollment data for the current academic year has yet to be released, but higher education institutions are already feeling the impact and expressing deep concerns about the future.

While many universities had seen steady growth in their international student populations in recent years, a survey of over 500 colleges and universities conducted by a nonprofit organization focused on promoting international education found that 35 percent of institutions experienced a decline in applications from abroad last spring—the largest drop since the pandemic began.