On Thursday, the 22nd of May, the government of US President Donald Trump decided that Harvard University can no longer admit foreign students. Existing foreign students were ordered to transfer to other schools or lose their residence permits. The authorities also warned that the restrictions could be extended to other universities, according to Reuters and the BBC.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem directed the department to revoke Harvard University’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification starting with the 2025-2026 academic year, the department said in a statement.
Without this certification, the university cannot issue the necessary documents (such as Form I-20) that allow students to obtain F-1 or J-1 visas.
“Let this serve as a warning to all universities and academic institutions across the country,” she wrote on X on Thursday.
Noem accused the university of “promoting violence, anti-Semitism and collaboration with the Chinese Communist Party”.
The Trump administration’s decisions could affect thousands of international students studying at the university. According to the university, more than 6 700 international students were enrolled in the 2024-2025 academic year, accounting for 27% of its student population.
IN 2022, CHINESE NATIONALS WERE THE LARGEST GROUP OF FOREIGN STUDENTS, WITH 1 016, ACCORDING TO UNIVERSITY DATA.
This was followed by students from Canada, India, South Korea, the UK, Germany, Australia, Singapore and Japan.
“Universities have the privilege, not the right, to admit foreign students and benefit from their much larger tuition fees, which help to secure their multi-billion dollar endowments,” Noem said in a statement.
In a letter to Harvard, Noem said the university could regain its certificate if it handed over a large set of data within 72 hours. This included information on international students and any video or audio recordings of their protest activities over the past five years.
In a statement, Harvard University called the action “illegal” and said it was “fully committed” to educating international students.
“We are working expeditiously to provide guidance and support to members of our community. This act of retaliation threatens to cause serious harm to the Harvard University community and our country, and undermines Harvard’s academic and research mission.”
Congressional Democrats criticised the decision, with Representative James Raskin calling it “an unacceptable attack on Harvard University’s independence and academic freedom”. He said it was a punishment for Harvard standing up to Trump.
Trump has also frozen around three billion dollars in federal funding for the university, after it refused in April to accept White House demands on how it should recruit, admit and teach. The White House later said the list was sent in error. The university has taken legal action to recover the funding.
The Department of Homeland Security later warned Harvard that it could lose the right to admit international students unless it handed over certain documents.
Trump took office in January promising a wide-ranging crackdown on immigration. His administration has sought to revoke student visas and green cards of international students who took part in pro-Palestinian protests.
He has embarked on a reorganisation of private colleges and schools across the US, claiming that they promote anti-American, Marxist and “radical left” ideologies. He has criticised Harvard University for hiring prominent Democrats for teaching or management positions.
The US Department of Health and Human Services announced on Monday that it was stopping a further 60 million US dollars in federal grants to Harvard for failing to prevent anti-Semitic harassment and ethnic discrimination.
In a legal complaint filed earlier this month, Harvard University said it is committed to fighting anti-Semitism and has taken steps to ensure that its campus is safe and welcoming for Jewish and Israeli students.