Visa terminations and Social Media Screenings: The US is Turning Away from Global Education

Anon Yu Henriksen, International News Staff Writer, BA International Relations and Korean

The United States, long regarded as a global leader in higher education, is facing scrutiny over recent policy changes by the Trump administration that some say challenge the country's reputation as an international education hub.

Earlier this month, the newspaper ‘The Hill’ reported that 200 international students in the US are suing the State Department after essentially being trapped in the country. After about 1,200 international students’ visas were abruptly terminated by ICE earlier this year, many went the legal route, resulting in dozens of judges issuing orders to restore the students’ legal statuses. Some of the students were accused of ‘minor infractions’, while others were given no official reason. Despite the students winning judicial support, the government has continued to withhold their visas, meaning that they were essentially entrapped in the US.

This is only one of many examples of the increasingly draconian student visa policies enacted by the Trump administration. In August, around 6,000 students lost their international student visas due to ‘violations of US law and overstays’, according to the BBC. Among those were 300 students who were accused of ‘terrorist activities,’ a term previously used to revoke the visas of students like Ranjani Srinivasan, allegedly over her support for Palestine. In May, the Trump administration announced a global hiatus in its student visa processing. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Al Jazeera that the pause was necessary to increase screening of applicants’ social media activity.

The strengthened monitoring of social media has been criticised as an attack on freedom of speech. Other policies, such as the sudden revocation of student visas, have restricted students’ freedom of movement, leaving them unable to visit family, even in emergency situations. The constant fear of deportation is hardly compatible with the demands of student life. International students, some as young as 18, often face issues related to homesickness, cultural differences, finances, and studies. In addition, many report that the added uncertainty regarding their legal status has disrupted their university experience.

Here in the UK, the government has also tightened policies regarding international students. According to the BBC, tens of thousands of international students were directly contacted by the Home Office in September and told they will be removed from the country if they overstay their visas. The period international graduates can remain in the UK after their graduation has also been reduced from 2 years to 18 months by the current Labour government, according to University World News. Successive UK governments have hardened immigration rhetoric as well as imposed stricter visa rules. The Financial Times recently reported that student visa applications to the UK are now in decline.

Hostility toward both immigrants and intellectualism is on the rise across the West. Countries like the US are turning away from globalism and adopting more protectionist policies. International students are among the first victims of these shifts. The idea of global, borderless higher education has long been seen as key in promoting liberal values internationally, but it is now under pressure, particularly due to the Trump administration.