U.S. Visa Restrictions on Chinese Students Threaten Long-Standing Educational Ties

In the early hours of a night in 1978, President Jimmy Carter received a phone call from a senior adviser stationed in China.

The adviser, Frank Press, conveyed a message from Deng Xiaoping, then China's paramount leader: a request to allow 5,000 Chinese students to study at American universities.

President Carter responded enthusiastically, urging to send 100,000 students instead.

By the end of that year, the first group of 52 Chinese students arrived in the United States, shortly before the formal establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The following month, Deng made a historic visit to the U.S., famously enjoying a performance of “Take Me Home, Country Roads” and donning a cowboy hat.

The level of engagement between the U.S. and China before this was minimal. As historian John K. Fairbank noted in 1971, more Americans had been sent to the moon than to China since 1950. Deng’s visit and the influx of Chinese students signaled a new era, one that would transform China and open new doors for both nations. The United States accessed a vast talent pool and market, while China gained a blueprint and partnership for economic reform.

This promising chapter appears to be closing following the recent announcement by the Trump administration that it will begin aggressively revoking visas for Chinese students.

For millions of Chinese students who have pursued education in the U.S., including myself, this development is deeply troubling. It represents a turning point where America, once a symbol of openness and opportunity, is increasingly restricting access for those seeking advanced education and the freedoms associated with it.