Taiwan students heading to Harvard 'anxious' after US enrolment block
Yu-Hsuan Lin, 27, poses for a photo with a Harvard hat and hoodie in Taipei, Taiwan May 24, 2025. REUTERS/Ann Wang
TAIPEI (Reuters) -With an admission letter in hand, Taiwanese student Yu-hsuan Lin was ready to attend her dream school, Harvard University, this September.
But the decision of U.S. President Donald Trump's administration to revoke Harvard University's ability to enrol foreign students made her feel anxious and helpless, Lin told Reuters at her Taipei apartment.
"The path towards my dream is actually harder and tougher than I expected. There are so many uncertainties," she said.
"I thought that I could accept all the changes along the way as what we have gone through in the past half year. However, this one is specifically (targeted) at the international students. So I kind of feel like really hit by it. And that's why I feel kind of anxious."
The decision marked a significant escalation of the Trump administration's campaign against the elite Ivy League university in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Harvard called it a "blatant violation" of the U.S. Constitution and other federal laws.
A U.S. judge temporarily blocked the administration's order, but it did not provide comfort to Lin who has yet to receive her visa.
"I think I would either defer my studies at Harvard, as they said that's one of the possibilities, or I would probably apply for master programmes in Europe or the UK."
Taiwan's education ministry said it expects 52 Taiwanese students to be affected by the U.S. government's move, the island's official Central News Agency reported.
Another Taiwanese student, who asked to be identified only by his first name Vince, planned to start his public health studies at Harvard this year.
"We are certainly feeling pretty nervous, and it's been a dream for me to come from a small town in Taiwan all the way to Harvard," he said.
"I think that this is the best that the United States can offer. So, I would like to plead to the president that, please, I hope that this continuous generosity can be continued."
(Reporting by Katie Tam, Angie Teo and Ann Wang; Writing by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Trump administration renegotiating 'overly generous' Biden Chips Act grants
Semiconductor chips are seen on a circuit board of a computer in this illustration picture taken February 25, 2022. REUTERS/Florence Lo/Illustration/File Photo WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Donald Trump's administration is renegotiating some of former President Joe Biden's grants to semiconductor firms that were "overly generous," U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said at a hearing on Wednesday. Biden's Chips Act aimed to coax chipmakers to expand production in the U.S., but some of the awards "just seemed overly generous, and we've been able to renegotiate them," Lutnick told lawmakers on the Senate Appropriations Committee. "Are we renegotiating? Absolutely, for the benefit of the American taxpayer," he added. Lutnick also addressed concerns that deals like the one announced by Trump to allow the United Arab Emirates to buy advanced artificial intelligence chips from U.S. companies last month could lead to an exodus of AI compute from the U.S. Lutnick said the administration agrees with the goal that more than 50% of global AI computing capacity should be in America. (Reporting by Alexandra Alper; Editing by David Gregorio)
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Britain's Prince Harry explored changing surname to Spencer, says Guardian report
FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prince Harry looks on during the closing ceremony of the Invictus Games at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, February 16, 2025. REUTERS/Jennifer Gauthier/File Photo LONDON (Reuters) -Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan explored the idea of changing their family name to Spencer amid months of delays in their two children receiving British passports, the Guardian newspaper reported on Wednesday. Harry, the Duke of Sussex, believed that the passport delays were the result of British officials blocking the applications over the use of the Sussex surname and HRH titles (his or her royal highness) for his children, the newspaper said, citing an unnamed source. A source with knowledge of the matter told Reuters that the prince had a meeting with his late mother Diana's brother, Charles Spencer, to discuss the family name. The source also said other media reports which said Spencer had advised Harry against changing his surname and that the legal hurdles to doing so were insurmountable, were inaccurate. Harry, the younger son of King Charles, stepped down from royal duties in 2020 and moved to California, where he lives with Meghan and their two children, Archie and Lilibet. Since leaving, he and Meghan have been highly critical of the royals in TV documentaries, an explosive interview with U.S. chat show host Oprah Winfrey and most notably in Harry's best-selling biography "Spare." The prince is barely on speaking terms with either his father or his elder brother, heir to the throne Prince William. In a BBC interview last month, Harry said he wanted reconciliation with the British royal family, but that his father King Charles will not speak to him over a separate row about his security. (Reporting by Michael Holden and Sachin Ravikumar; editing by William James)
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Brazil plans to cut tax breaks, curb education spending in fiscal package, say sources
Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva stands on the day he attends a press conference at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil June 3, 2025. REUTERS/Adriano Machado/File Photo BRASILIA (Reuters) -Brazil's government is negotiating a package of fiscal measures with congressional leaders that includes cuts to tax exemptions and limits on the growth of transfers to an education fund, according to sources familiar with the talks. After initially signaling the measures would be unveiled on Tuesday, Finance Minister Fernando Haddad said they would be disclosed only after further discussions with party leaders on Sunday. First reported by local newspaper Valor Economico and confirmed by three government sources who requested anonymity, the package is being prepared as an alternative to the controversial hike in the financial transactions tax (IOF) announced last week, which drew broad backlash from lawmakers and business sectors. The plan focuses heavily on reducing tax benefits, a longstanding target of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's leftist administration, said three sources. His economic team often criticizes the volume of tax exemptions that weaken public revenues, though previous attempts to roll them back have seen limited success in Congress. That includes a payroll tax break for companies, which remains in place without due compensation. One of the sources said the new package includes a proposed constitutional amendment that would establish rules to curb growth in transfers to the Fund for the Development of Basic Education. A similar initiative in last year's fiscal package was watered down by Congress, which blocked efforts to redirect more of the fund's resources to full-time education spending. The new measures aim to create fiscal space for the government to revise the recent IOF tax decree, which increased rates on a range of credit, foreign exchange, and pension transactions. (Reporting by Bernardo Caram and Lisandra Paraguassu, writing by Marcela Ayres; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
