Academic Freedom at Risk: Trump Administration Restricts Harvard’s International Students

Author: Bryan Lin


        Within hours of President Trump’s ban on international students at Harvard, Izzy Shen watched her approved visa application get rejected. The 23-year-old from Beijing had been set to begin her Master’s program at America’s most prestigious university, until she became collateral damage in the attack on academic excellence. And she is not alone. The Trump Administration’s recent attempt at restricting Harvard’s ability to admit international students is a direct attack that threatens America’s decades-long dominance in global education and research.

        International students have been the driving force behind many breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, medical research, and technology that has kept the United States ahead of global competitors. According to an article on CNBC, “More than half of the top American tech companies were founded by immigrants or the children of immigrants”. More specifically, the founders of Google (Sergey Brin, whose family immigrated from Russia), Tesla and SpaceX (Elon Musk from South Africa), and Zoom (Eric Yuan from China) all came to America as international students or immigrants. Current tech leaders like Google’s Sundar Pichai and Microsoft’s Satya Nadella both came from India.

        This misguided ban doesn’t just harm international students like Shen, it also indirectly harms other American students. The same CNBC article states that “U.S. universities including Harvard rely heavily on international students, who often pay far more in tuition than their American classmates” and while their tuition may be paid by their governments, the higher average tuition cost helps offset cost from American students. The loss of these contributions is not something that universities can easily make up by accepting more domestic students. Additionally, a Washington Post Article points out the fact that “International students contributed $44 billion to the U.S. economy in the 2023-2024 school year”. By banning the admittance of international students, American students will undoubtedly have to pay more for university to offset the cost differential and our Economy will see a significant hit as well, which adds to the whole absurdity of the situation.

        The consequences of this proposed ‘ban’ have already started materializing. As Harvard’s prospective international students face uncertainty about their futures, foreign governments are swooping in with open arms. Hong Kong officials have stated that their doors are wide open to students facing discrimination, while European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has already committed to the launch of a new campaign called “Choose Europe for Science”. This new campaign would see the European Union budget €500 million (567 million in U.S. dollars) in new money for the years 2025–27 to make Europe a magnet for researchers, a clear attempt at seizing up researchers who may have otherwise chosen school in America.

        The Trump administration’s direct attack on Harvard’s international student body shows a fundamental misunderstanding of what has made America great. For centuries, the United States has thrived by attracting the world’s brightest minds, who have reinvested in the country, conducting important research and making incredible discoveries, and driving the innovation that keeps America on top of the global stage.


Works Cited


Boundless. “Tech Entrepreneurs Who Started as International Students.” Boundless, www.boundless.com/blog/tech-entrepreneurs/. Accessed 30 May 2025.

Feuer, Alan, and Li You. “Locked Out of Harvard, International Students Look Elsewhere.” NBC News, 27 May 2025, www.nbcnews.com/world/asia/harvard-international-student-ban-trump-china-europe-rcna209044. Accessed 30 May 2025.

Griffiths, James. “Europe Launches $570 Million Drive to Lure Scientists Away from Trump’s America.” CNN, 5 May 2025, www.cnn.com/2025/05/05/business/europe-france-science-policy-intl. Accessed 30 May 2025.

Hernandez, Stephanie. “International Students’ $44 Billion Economic Impact at Risk Under Trump Policies.” The Washington Post, 28 May 2025, www.washingtonpost.com/education/2025/05/28/international-students-economic-impact-trump-harvard/. Accessed 30 May 2025.

Huddleston Jr., Tom. “These 44 US Companies Were All Founded by Immigrants or Their Children.” CNBC, 30 May 2018, www.cnbc.com/2018/05/30/us-tech-companies-founded-by-immigrants-or-the-children-of-immigrants.html. Accessed 30 May 2025.

Wilhelm, Alex. “Nearly Half of US ‘Unicorn’ Companies Have at Least One Immigrant Founder.” Crunchbase News, news.crunchbase.com/startups/immigrant-ceos-founders-unicorns-spacex-stripe-instacart/. Accessed 30 May 2025.

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