The Trump administration has completely forbade Harvard University to have foreign students. What happens to those who take their courses in the present
Harvard University. Credit Line: Joseph Presioso / AFP / Profimedia
The Trump administration has completely revoked the right of Harvard University to enroll students from other countries, in an increasing confrontation with the prestigious institution in Ivy League. Thousands of foreign students already registered are now forced either to transfer to other universities or leave the country, notes AP News.
The US Department of Internal Security announced on Thursday that he withdraws the Harvard University the right to enroll foreign students, accusing the institution of creating “an uncertain environment” by tolerating “anti-American, pro-terrorist” agitators who would have assaulted Jewish students. In addition, the US authorities claim that Harvard would have collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party, hosting and training members of a Chinese paramilitary group in 2024.
“This means that Harvard can no longer enroll foreign students, and those who are already registered must transfer or lose their legal status,” the Agency said, in a statement.
Harvard University currently has almost 6,800 foreign students at its Cambridge campus, Massachusetts, which represents over a quarter of the total students. Most are masters or doctoral students, coming from over 100 countries.
Harvard University has qualified the measure as illegal and announced that it works to provide support and guidance to affected students.
“This repressive action threatens to cause serious harm to the Harvard community and the whole country and undermine the academic and research mission of the University,” the higher education institution said, in a statement.
The conflict started from a request made on April 16 by the Secretary for Internal Security, Kristi Noem. In the letter addressed to the Harvard leadership, Noem demanded the University to provide information about foreign students who could be involved in acts of violence or protests that could lead to their deportation.
In a new letter sent on Thursday, Kristi Noem states that Harvard applied sanction is “the regrettable result of the refusal to comply with simple reporting requirements.”
Noem claims that the University can regain its right to receive foreign students only if, within 72 hours, it sends a large set of documents on their activity. The updated request concerns all the records – including audio and video – of foreign students who participated in protests or activities considered dangerous in campus.
“This administration is responsible for responsible for encouraging violence, anti-Semitism and because he collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party in his campus,” said Kristi Noem, in a statement.
The administration has revoked the certification of the Harvard University within the Student and Exchange Visitor Program program, which means that the institution no longer has the right to sponsor international students to obtain visas in the United States.
