Why President Trump Does Not Like International Students?

International students coming to the U.S for their higher education is a positive point for the U.S economy. And as per the latest survey in 2017, international students have contributed around $42 billion to the U.S economy.

But looking at the current scenario, it is becoming difficult for the international students to study in the U.S due to multiple reasons like delay in student visa, denial in visa, taking a long time to process the visa application and many more. In Aug 2019, 9 Chinese ASU students were detained at Los Angeles airport by Customs and Border Protection officials and were sent back to China. 

9 Chinese students detained at Los Angeles airport – Arizona State University: 

These 9 students from China were an undergraduate at ASU and returning to the U.S for the fall semester. But they were denied admission to the U.S. and were sent back to China. When asked to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) team, they mentioned that these students were considered inadmissible to the United States as per the Immigration and Nationality Act. At present, these students are still enrolled with ASU and working through the online program of ASU. 

Not only are these students, but there are many cases where International students have reported delays and issues with visas under Trump administration. A Palestinian student was also sent back to his home country Lebanon just because the CBP team at the airport found some post which was showcasing political views against the United States on the student’s friends post. This post was nothing to relate to the student. But still, he was stopped from entering the country. 

International Enrollments are Dipping Fast

It has been noticed that international enrollment is dipping fast and down more than 10 per cent from 2015 to 2016 academic year. Since 2016, the rejection of international student visas has increased by more than 35 per cent. According to the state department under Trump’s administration, in 2016 student visa granted was 474,000, 2017 it was 395,000, and in 2018 it was 362,000.

These international students are a financial solvent for many colleges. Out of many other problems losing international students is becoming the major one for the colleges. Demand for studying in the U.S. College was high, especially in engineering and science. The majority of students come from India and China, but there are many countries like Saudi Arabia, where government pay to send the students to the U.S. to earn a degree. 

Due to Trump’s administration policy for immigration, international students are less motivated to want to study in the United States. Student Visa denials and delays are having a strong impact on enrollments. The effect of talent acquisition appears to be minimal to nonexistent.

Impact of Rejections

Rejection of International students has surely impacted to maintain expenditure for many institutions. As per the memorandum signed by Trump in 2017, enhancing the screening and vetting of applications for visa and all immigration benefits is demanded, which made the check of electronic devices at ports during entry necessary. 

Previously small mistakes like missing signature, mentioning incorrect fees, or sending applications a day late were forgiven by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), but now these sorts of mistakes may lead a student to lose the whole year or incur unlawful presence. 

The U.S. and its universities are still an attraction to international students. Trump’s administration for the past two and half years has tried to diminish this attractiveness, but fundamentally they haven’t. U.S. Administration has to understand that they are not only losing students but also losing faculty, researchers, and scholars. They are making the U.S. Colleges and universities less desirable than they were once.