Over half of American colleges and universities have seen a drop in enrollment of international students, according to a new report that comes as the Trump administration cracks down on higher education.
About 57% of the more than 825 institutions surveyed have reported a decrease in new international enrollment this fall, according to data published Monday by the Institute of International Education. Meanwhile, 29% reported an increase and 14% noted stability.
New international enrollment has declined 17% for the new academic year, while overall international enrollment has dropped only 1% since last fall. The drop is primarily driven by visa application concerns (96%) and travel restrictions (68%) during President Donald Trump’s second term.
Trump is particularly targeting schools that failed to punish students engaging in antisemitic, pro-Palestinian protests on campus since the war between Israel and Hamas started in October 2023.
The Trump administration withheld federal grants from several universities to pressure them into capitulating to its demands on campus policies, particularly those amounting to civil rights violations. The administration has since made deals with Columbia University, Brown University, Cornell University, and the University of Virginia to settle those civil rights claims and restore federal funding.
As part of its $220 million settlement with the federal government, Columbia agreed to establish an independent monitor, who will provide reports about the university’s compliance with federal laws and regulations related to admissions and international students.
Separately, the Trump administration is moving to implement policies that favor domestic students by limiting the number of international students entering the United States.
This fall, the White House offered nine elite schools the opportunity to sign a 10-point agreement. If they agree to sign the “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education,” the universities would be required to maintain a 15% cap for international undergraduate students to ensure spots remain “available to deserving American students.”
“Signatories pledge to select those foreign students on the basis of demonstrably extraordinary talent, rather than on the basis of financial advantage to the university; to screen out students who demonstrate hostility to the United States, its allies, or its values; and to provide instruction in American civics to all foreign students,” the agreement states.
The universities would also be bound to share any known information about foreign students with the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department. Additionally, the compact bars the use of foreign funding as an incentive for universities deciding to admit or not admit “any foreign student or group of students.”
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So far, none of the listed schools has accepted the terms of the agreement.
The University of Southern California rejected the proposal after Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom threatened to pull state funding if the school agreed. Newsom has consistently resisted Trump’s intervention in California’s higher education system.
