With Trump's latest threat against Chinese international students, academic exchange and tuition dollars are at risk

Boston Globe

4 days ago

Although specifics of the new policy are still unclear, Ye sees Rubio's 'rejection' of Chinese students as 'a strong signal that we want to go back to the '70s,' she said, before 'the whole global collaboration in science, technology, and education.'
'The dominant narrative seems to be that the US possesses abundant resources and cutting-edge technologies, and that international students come to 'steal' them for their home countries,' she observed.
Advertisement
But that's not true, she said:
International students come because American universities are world-renowned for nurturing individuality and innovation.
'This environment is like the air we breathe — often unnoticed, but incredibly precious to those who have never experienced it.'
Foreign-born students make up almost 18 percent of postsecondary enrollment in Massachusetts, more than anywhere in the country, Boston Indicators found in
Advertisement
From Boston to the Berkshires, those students support $3.9 billion in economic activity and more than 35,000 jobs, according to
While India and other countries
also send large numbers of students here, it's particularly difficult to separate the US-China academic exchange from
'China is one of the most powerful nations in the world, so you want to have as many relationships and dependencies between the two countries as possible,' said Larry Ladd, a former budget officer at Harvard and now a financing expert at the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges. 'When you create pure antagonism, it's not good for anybody.'
Students who had their visas revoked would have to go to a US consulate abroad to return here, a process that immigration attorney Dan Berger said takes time. Once a visa is revoked, US Immigrations and Customs Enforcement can put the student into deportation proceedings, which is what happened to
'It may not happen to many,' said Berger, 'but it is a real concern.'
Rubio's promised revocation of visas for Chinese students comes on the heels of
Advertisement
With fewer students from China, Harvard, Northeastern, and Boston University could see a notable reduction in their incoming classes, where at least
Many international undergraduate students pay full tuition to attend US colleges, which allows schools to provide more expansive financial aid to domestic students.
Ladd said while universities such as Harvard could replace international undergraduates with more US students who can pay top-dollar, that's less likely at the graduate school level. Roughly half of international students in Massachusetts are pursuing master's degrees. For colleges without the same brand power as Harvard, Ladd added, the financial impact of losing those students would be 'much more severe, short term and long term.'
'If Chinese students had to leave right now, [the universities they attend] would be hurt financially, including Harvard, because the tuition would stop, at least for the fall,' Ladd said, and the losses would ripple through their local communities. 'Those students spend money,' from buying goods and services to renting apartments.
Take Amherst, home to the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts, with more than
may pay full tuition, said Amherst town manager Paul Bockelman, 'not that that matters to us.' What does matter: 'They're often renting units and going out to dinner and participating in cultural activities. They have a major economic impact.'
Advertisement
That impact is especially felt during summer, 'when most of the campuses vacate,' said Bockelman. 'A lot of the international students are here 12 months a year, and they're helping to sustain our local economy during the slower times.'
Now, much is up in the air. On Thursday, a federal judge
'At the very least, this will mean delays,' said Berger. 'Overall, this will add to the chilling effect on attracting international students to US higher education programs.'
Mary Churchill, a professor of higher education at Boston University, said roughly 90 percent of deferrals in a typical year are from students with visa troubles, and she expects that number to increase with the Trump administration's posturing.
'When students can't get their visa before the fall starts, many will request a deferral,' Churchill said. ' 'Can I come in January instead?' ... You will basically have thousands of people not moving here and living here.'
Renata Nyul, a spokesperson for Northeastern University, said the college is setting up 'contingency plans for those who might experience disruptions to their learning.' Suffolk University is providing housing this summer for international students who don't want to risk leaving the country, including some of its 50 Chinese students, spokesperson Greg Gatlin said.
MIT said it is 'fighting to ensure the 'visa vetting process ... is not implemented in a way that drives away the very talent that helps ensure our nation's competitiveness and prosperity,' according to a statement.
Advertisement
Mount Holyoke College takes prides in a
This fall Mount Holyoke is expecting about 140 international first-years, and more than one third have their visas already, 'so that's a good thing,' said Kavita Khory, a professor of politics and director of the McCulloch Center for Global Initiatives. With all the confusion around visas, however, 'we're creating a significant level of skepticism and doubt about our own documents: 'I have a visa, but will I actually be able to come in?' '
One 21-year-old Chinese student at Mount Holyoke, who is afraid of her visa being revoked
and asked not to be named, is staying in South Hadley for the summer. If it were revoked, she would immediately get letters of recommendation and apply to schools in Europe or Hong Kong.
And, if that didn't pan out, she'd likely take a few gap years 'and wait it out until the end of this administration and work in China meanwhile,' she said.
'It would definitely be emotionally devastating, though.'
Brooke Hauser can be reached at