Colleges are increasingly worried about President Trump scaring away their international students.
More than a million foreign-born scholars attend U.S. universities every year, bringing billions of dollars to the economy and a pipeline of high-value workers.
But Trump's crackdown on student demonstrators, coming alongside his attacks on higher education more broadly, could have them looking elsewhere.
“The Trump administration is purportedly trying to improve the economic and business climate for U.S.-based companies, and to grow American jobs and salaries. But the apprehension now felt by countless prospective international students and their families are undermining those very important goals,” said Eddie West, assistant vice president of international affairs at California State University, Fresno.
In the 2023-2024 academic year, there were approximately 1.1 million foreign students who contributed $43.8 billion to the U.S. economy, according to data collected by the Association for International Educators, or NAFSA, and JB International. Those numbers represent both a record and the third straight year of growth after the COVID-19 pandemic.
NAFSA found that for every three international students, one U.S. job is created or supported.
And U.S.-educated foreign graduates have a terrific success rate: A study by the National Foundation for American Policy in 2018 found that one out of every four billion-dollar startups in America were created by former international students who studied here.
"It's worth remembering that it's not just colleges and universities whose finances will be impacted, but their local communities will be as well. Think restaurants, accommodation providers, inbound visits by international students' family members and other so-called economic multipliers,” West said.
Those students, who often pay far more in tuition than domestic ones, can also help fill in gaps as overall enrollment declines — down 15 percent from 2010 to 2021, according to the National Center for Education Statistics
"Colleges and universities are already facing reduced enrollments due to the demographic cliff and diminishing public support for higher education in some parts of the U.S.,” said Ruth Johnston, vice president of consulting services at NACUBO.
The No. 1 exporter of students to the U.S. last year was India, which sent some 331,602, a 23 percent increase year-over-year and enough to seize the top spot from China.
And multiple Indian citizens have been caught up in the Trump administration's sweeping efforts to detain and deport students who participated in pro-Palestinian demonstrations.
Badar Khan Suri, a postdoctoral scholar at Georgetown University, was arrested by U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and told his visa was revoked.
Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said Suri was “actively spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting ...
