Trump's New Visa Rules Raise Concerns For International Students

In 2024, during his presidential campaign, now President Donald Trump proposed an idea: If elected, he would grant a green card to all international students who graduated from a U.S. college.

It is now September, and we have not seen President Trump take any initiative on the idea. In fact, he seems to be doing the opposite. Under a travel ban signed in June, the Trump administration has taken several actions that negatively impact the education of international students, including pausing new  visa appointments, revoking existing visas, and expanding restrictions for travelers from certain countries.

Under a new rule proposed last week, the federal government would have authority to set admission and extension periods for foreign students up to four years. Admitting these students for a fixed period would also force them to apply to extend their stay with USCIS, disrupting their education. It will also be harder for students to transfer to an H-1 visa or qualify for OPT and STEM OPT.     International students pay about $50,000–$80,000 a year and have contributed approximately $44 billion to the U.S. economy.

  This rule was first introduced under Trump in 2020 but withdrawn by the Biden Administration in 2021. Aditi Baswapuram Chaudhary (10) expresses her disagreement with the rule, “I really don’t appreciate what Trump is doing, because what if someone wants to work and study at the same time, and if their parents can’t afford tuition? If someone wants a etter education and decides to come here, why should they not be able to? This is why I don’t agree with this policy. I would like to work and study at the same time. It’s a lot of work, but at least it will relieve the pressure on my parents.”

Similarly, Keerthana Krithivasan (10) states, “I think what Trump has imposed is very unfair and extremely targeted. The reason most people come here to study is to provide for their families and find opportunities. With this new petition, it defeats the purpose of coming here to study. By not allowing them to get jobs here, it defeats the purpose of coming here to learn.”

Photo from Unsplash | Trump's new law could hurt international students.