Gulf students look to Canada and Australia as backup as Trump wages war on liberal universities

The National

a day ago

Young people in the Gulf are increasingly looking to alternatives to American universities.
US President Donald Trump's clampdown on foreign student visas is barely a week old, but it places the spotlight on a broader trend for Arab school-leavers to have alternatives at hand.
Countries such as Canada and Australia are seen as alternatives by those concerned that tighter restrictions under Mr Trump, who took office for the second time in January, may scupper their dream of an American education.
As The National reported earlier this year, Gulf students are increasingly shifting away from US universities, though this is not necessarily linked to the Trump administration.
The number of Emiratis studying in the US nearly halved between 2015 and 2023, from 2,900 to 1,500, while the number of Saudi students in the US fell from 61,287 to 15,989 in the same period.
Madhav Juneja, director and country manager for the UAE and Mena region for Crimson Education, a consultancy that assists students in securing university spots, said students were 'applying to more places, just so they've got ample choices depending on how things play out'.
'As well as their US applications, they're also now adding other places, just so they're more resilient and immune to any kind of political developments and economic uncertainty,' Mr Juneja said.
Last week, the US State Department told its embassies and consulates not to arrange any more interviews with students applying for visas, although already-scheduled interviews are going ahead. The pause is to allow for additional vetting of applicants' social media accounts.
The move came after reports indicated that more than 1,000 international students in the country had had their visas cancelled or their legal status otherwise changed, mostly because they had been involved in pro-Palestinian protests at American universities.
Strained relations
Last year, under Mr Trump's predecessor, Joe Biden, more than 3,000 students were arrested when police dismantled tent camps and other occupations.
Recently, in a campus anti-Semitism row and amid government attempts to amend curriculums and end diversity initiatives, Mr Trump has attempted to stop Harvard University – the richest and probably most prestigious higher education institution in the US – from enrolling foreign students.
Such contentions have not, however, dimmed students' enthusiasm for a US education, according to Mr Juneja, although he acknowledged that there was 'a bit of uncertainty in the air'.
'There are the arrests and I think a lot of this is naturally grabbing the headlines all around the world, so it's leading to questions, but I think most folks would still like to see how things plays out,' he said. 'There is obviously going to be a legal battle for a couple of months. I don't think people are giving up on the American dream or conclusively going to a different place, but I think they want to keep options open.
'We've had students in the process of high school now who have US offers and Canada offers. They might be more closely looking at the Canada offers, but I think students are still very much looking at the US.'
Mr Juneja said that the country remained a strong 'brand' for higher education, with many students 'still very much Ivy League-obsessed', a reference to the elite group of older US institutions. 'That brand naturally means stronger alumni communities,' he said. 'A lot of the top companies across tech, consulting, finance, they hire from these top universities, so it is a pathway for a lot of students to their dream job.
'Students are not just going there to study calculus or statistics, they're going there for the opportunity. The US still presents the highest level of career-building opportunities. We're confident that once the dust settles there will still be a smooth pathway for students from here and all around the world to go to places like Harvard and the US.'
On Wednesday, the situation was compounded when Mr Trump suspended the entry of foreign students seeking to study at Harvard University for an initial six months.
Growing concerns
There is 'increasing concern among international students about studying in the US', according to David Hawkins, the director and founder of The University Guys, a UK higher education consultancy. 'The combination of visa uncertainties, news about student arrests at demonstrations and political rhetoric has created a perception issue,' he said.
He said that administrative or legal issues should, however, be distinguished from the actual experience of studying in the US. 'The issue is that the legal situation will, in time, resolve itself – but do students want to be in the US while it does and the 'mood music' is potentially hostile?' he said. Among students that The University Guys assists, Mr Hawkins said that Canada, the UK, the EU and Australia remain the primary alternatives.
Just as some foreign students may be thinking twice about the US, so tourists are looking elsewhere, with the research organisation Oxford Economics forecasting last month that there would be an 8.7 per cent reduction in international visitor arrivals in the US this year. Foreign visitor spending is set to fall $8.5 billion, or 4.7 per cent, according to the organisation.
Professor Alan Smithers, director of the Centre for Education and Employment Research at The University of Buckingham in the UK, said that deterring Middle Eastern students from going to the US for higher education 'may be Trump's aim' in pausing visa interviews.
He said that he thought it unlikely that significant numbers of students would look at the UK instead, partly because the UK government had tightened visa availability for international students because, like other countries, it wanted to deal with the problem that 'international students are sometimes a route for migration'.
'It might be that the students who would like to go to Harvard and the other institutions, very bright people, will perhaps aim at the first-rate universities in Australia and New Zealand,' Prof Smithers said.
Close to home
The UAE and other GCC nations have significantly expanded their higher education sectors in recent decades and these institutions are attracting young people from inside and outside the region.
Gary Fernandes, an associate regional director at Heriot-Watt University Dubai, said that 'many students' chose to remain in the Middle East for their higher education. 'Several factors contribute to this shift, including the region's growing reputation for academic excellence, improved access to globally accredited programmes, and the overall safety and stability the UAE offers,' he said.
He said the safety of cities such as Dubai and Abu Dhabi offered 'peace of mind to families', while policies such as the Golden Visa for students and other exceptional individuals 'have made the UAE more attractive' for students from many parts of the world. A representative for the University of Sydney in Australia said that it was 'premature to predict what impact changes in the US might have on our enrolments'.
'We'll continue to monitor developments and consult with governments and the sector, working to bolster and protect our vital international research and education partnerships,' the representative added. 'We're deeply concerned about the disruption and disappointment facing students in the US. International students contribute immensely to the academic and cultural fabric of university life, which is why we welcome them to study here at the University of Sydney.'
Similarly, with the US government having only recently paused student interviews, a representative for the University of Toronto in Canada said it was too early to say whether there had been any effect on application numbers. However, the institution said it had experienced a growth in interest from students in the US, many thought to be Canadian citizens.
'The University of Toronto saw a meaningful increase in applications over previous recent years for the 2025-26 academic year from potential US students,' the representative said.
Some universities outside the region, including Western University in Ontario, Canada, are specifically targeting the Middle East when they recruit students.
'Recently, we've expanded our recruitment efforts in the Middle East, with a focus on the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman,' Marisa Modeski, the university's registrar, said.
However, while Canadian universities are looking to the Middle East for international students, the country's government has cut the number of international study permits issued each year by 10 per cent, from 485,000 last year, to 437,000 this year and next year. Pressure on housing is one factor behind the reduction.