Latest news with #ChooseEuropeforScience
New Indian Express
25-05-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Foreign universities want to hire scientists who lost jobs, grants in US funding cuts
But today that system is being shaken. Since President Donald Trump took office in January, his administration has pointed to what it calls waste and inefficiency in federal science spending and made major cuts to staff levels and grant funding at the National Science Foundation,the National Institutes of Health, NASA and other agencies, as well as slashing research dollars that flow to some private universities. The White House budget proposal for next year calls to cut the NIH budget by roughly 40% and the National Science Foundation's by 55%. 'The Trump administration is spending its first few months reviewing the previous administration's projects, identifying waste, and realigning our research spending to match the American people's priorities and continue our innovative dominance," said White House spokesperson Kush Desai. Already, several universities have announced hiring freezes, laid off staff or stopped admitting new graduate students. On Thursday, the Trump administration revoked Harvard University's ability to enroll international students, though a judge put that on hold. Research institutions abroad are watching with concern for collaborations that depend on colleagues in the U.S. — but they also see opportunities to potentially poach talent. 'There are threats to science ... south of the border,' said Brad Wouters, of University Health Network, Canada's leading hospital and medical research center, which launched the 'Canada Leads' recruitment drive. 'There's a whole pool of talent, a whole cohort that is being affected by this moment.' Promising a safe place to do science Universities worldwide are always trying to recruit from one another, just as tech companies and businesses in other fields do. What's unusual about the current moment is that many global recruiters are targeting researchers by promising something that seems newly threatened: academic freedom. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said this month that the European Union intends 'to enshrine freedom of scientific research into law.' She spoke at the launch of the bloc's 'Choose Europe for Science' — which was in the works before the Trump administration cuts but has sought to capitalize on the moment. Eric Berton, president of Aix-Marseille University, expressed a similar sentiment after launching the institution's 'Safe Place for Science' program. 'Our American research colleagues are not particularly interested by money," he said of applicants. "What they want above all is to be able to continue their research and that their academic freedom be preserved." Too early to say 'brain drain' It's too early to say how many scientists will choose to leave the U.S. It will take months for universities to review applications and dole out funding, and longer for researchers to uproot their lives. Plus, the American lead in funding research and development is enormous — and even significant cuts may leave crucial programs standing. The U.S. has been the world's leading funder of R&D — including government, university and private investment — for decades. In 2023, the country funded 29% of the world's R&D, according to the American Association for the Advancement of Science. But some institutions abroad are reporting significant early interest from researchers in the U.S. Nearly half of the applications to 'Safe Place for Science' — 139 out of 300 total — came from U.S.-based scientists, including AI researchers and astrophysicists. U.S.-based applicants in this year's recruitment round for France's Institute of Genetics, Molecular and Cellular Biology roughly doubled over last year. At the Max Planck Society in Germany, the Lise Meitner Excellence Program — aimed at young female researchers — drew triple the number of applications from U.S.-based scientists this year as last year. Recruiters who work with companies and nonprofits say they see a similar trend. Natalie Derry, a U.K.-based managing partner of the Global Emerging Sciences Practice at recruiter WittKieffer, said her team has seen a 25% to 35% increase in applicants from the U.S. cold-calling about open positions. When they reach out to scientists currently based in the U.S., 'we are getting a much higher hit rate of people showing interest.' Still, there are practical hurdles to overcome for would-be continent-hoppers, she said. That can include language hurdles, arranging childcare or eldercare, and significant differences in national pension or retirement programs.
NDTV
21-05-2025
- Business
- NDTV
How Trump's Immigration Crackdown Threatens To Hit Columbia's Finances
Quick Read Summary is AI generated, newsroom reviewed. Columbia University, reliant on international students for revenue, faces financial strain due to Trump's immigration policies, which threaten its 40% foreign student population. This could deter future students and impact U.S. competitiveness in education. Columbia University's dependence on foreign students for its core revenue is proving to now be its Achilles heel. The Trump administration' aggressive tactics against immigration are draining the university of its finances. About 40 per cent of Columbia University's student pool consists of international students. Students pay $70,000 plus in tuition, but international students bring to the university what Trump froze in its federal research funds two months ago - $903.1 million. Columbia University ranks third in the US for international students, however, it is proving to be difficult each passing day with Trump's hardline immigration policies. Although the Trump administration was embroiled more furiously with Harvard University, it leaves Columbia also vulnerable to the White House because of its makeup. 'It's a large chunk of their student population that is differentially paying higher prices than domestic students. I'm sure it's a very serious concern of theirs,' said Jordan Matsudaira, a former deputy education undersecretary from the Biden administration. 'They have a massive endowment, but there are restrictions on how much of it they can spend from year to year.' Apart from Columbia, there's New York University and Northeastern University, as a destination for international students in the year 2023-2024 school year. As for NYU, which Barron Trump attends, anti-Israel protests have not drawn much attention. According to a report by Politico, international students are 'looking for an exit route', the graduate student who spoke to the publication, cited Ranjani Srinivasan, a doctoral candidate from Columbia who left for Canada after her student visa was revoked. 'I am getting ready, having a visa to go to Canada because what happened to Ranjani might happen to me and I might need to leave overnight,' the student said. 'This chill not only weakens our community — it undercuts our national interests. Our universities attract the most talented students and scholars from around the world — more than a million came last year. Much analysis has already been done on the impact of that loss on our economy and society', Acting Columbia President Claire Shipman said. Amid Trump's immigration policies and turmoil regarding research spending, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen unveiled a half-billion-euro 'Choose Europe for Science' plan, this month, to attract foreign researchers. The Trump administration came close to revoking visas of more than 1,600 international students as of May 7, but many of those revocations have been reversed after judges issued restraining orders. 'This is going to deter foreign students from coming to the United States,' said Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), whose district neighbors Columbia. 'And they're going to go to China …and they're going to stay in China and contribute to the economy there.' However, some Republicans feel that fewer students coming to wealthy institutions like Columbia University will not make much of a difference as 'they're all paying the same private school tuition rate,' Diane Auer Jones, an Education Department official during the first Trump administration, said. Some people also feel that the growing anti-semitism should be curbed in the campuses and 'get back to what our college experience should be' Rep. Burgess Owens (R-Utah) said, he added, 'to be productive, to understand our country and respect our culture. If that's not happening they need to go back home,' he said.
The Herald Scotland
16-05-2025
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
Foreign students are a boon to the US. Here's why that may change.
The first week of May, some of the European Union's most high-profile leaders gathered to launch a new initiative called "Choose Europe for Science." Speaking from the Sorbonne, France's most prominent university, they announced a 500-million euro investment meant to attract foreign researchers and college students to campuses across Europe. In a thinly veiled swipe at Donald Trump, Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, noted that the new program stood in stark contrast to the state of research funding in other global regions, where "the role of science in today's world is questioned." "The investment in fundamental, free and open research is questioned. What a gigantic miscalculation," she said, adding that "science has no passport, no gender, no ethnicity or political party." American colleges and universities have long been the most desired destinations for students from across the globe. Hundreds of thousands flock to the United States annually to enroll in undergraduate and graduate programs. In the 2023-24 school year alone, foreign students contributed more than $43 billion to the U.S. economy, according to NAFSA, the Association of International Educators. International students have long played an essential role at many U.S. colleges to support research, budgets and teaching programs. But the Trump administration's recent changes to immigration and education policy have led to widespread uncertainty at those schools, where administrators say they're bracing for a larger crisis if fewer students from abroad opt to study in the United States. In an unprecedented move, the Department of Homeland Security in April threatened to remove Harvard University's ability to enroll any foreign students - a tactic other colleges worry could be used on them, too. If that happened at Harvard, the consequences elsewhere would be devastating, said Suzanne Ortega, president of the Council of Graduate Schools. "The bottom line is students have choices of where to go, and if they choose to go to other nations that appear to be more welcoming, those nations' gains will be the U.S.'s loss," she said. Read more: Trump has been defunding university research. Does China benefit from it? In a recent interview on CNN, Education Secretary Linda McMahon said that while she acknowledged the importance of academic research, she believed the federal government should play a smaller role in supporting it. "Universities around the country have done a phenomenal amount of research," she said. "It's not incumbent upon the taxpayers to really foot the bill for all of that." Chaos with student immigration records In addition to cutting federal support for academic research, the federal government has targeted international students since the start of President Donald Trump's second term as part of a broader immigration crackdown. In March, college officials watched in dismay as the Department of Homeland Security began quietly removing the records of thousands of foreign students from a federal immigration database. At first, it was unclear why the students' records were being terminated. The Trump administration later revealed in court that the immigration records they erased, which allow foreign students to legally stay in the U.S., had been cross-referenced with a separate national criminal database. In some cases, lawyers said students had their legal statuses altered for minor traffic violations, such as unpaid parking tickets. Ron Cushing, the director of international services at the University of Cincinnati, said after the terminations began, chaos ensued. The students he worked with were in shock, and it wasn't clear what they were supposed to do next. "The only real option for most of these students was to obtain legal counsel," he said. As he understood it, once students' records were terminated, their legal status in the country was in jeopardy. After a flurry of lawsuits filed by students, judges across the country ordered injunctions saying that the Trump administration was likely violating the law. Though the Justice Department ultimately restored many students' immigration records, the court battle underscored how much the government was willing to expand executive power to deport students. Trump administration officials have accused many international students of supporting Hamas and characterized student visa revocations as part of a broader campaign to quell unrest on college campuses. Colleges depend on international students While international students make up roughly 6% of the higher education population, they play an outsized role in supporting schools' teaching, research and budgets. Unlike domestic students, they're more likely to pay full tuition costs. At many schools, enrolling one foreign student can have at least three times the financial effect of enrolling an in-state student, according to Clay Harmon, the executive director at the Association of International Enrollment Management, which helps colleges recruit international students. "There are a lot of reasons why many institutions are trying to look at international enrollment as one solution to address their financial challenges," he said. In STEM-focused graduate programs, the number of international students typically outweighs the number of domestic students, according to data from the Council of Graduate Schools. That dynamic, in many cases, makes more degrees possible for U.S.-born students. By paying tuition and teaching classes, international students help many schools maintain academic programs that would otherwise struggle. Of course, foreign students help with more than just campus budgets, said Kevin Timlin, the executive director of international education and services at Southeast Missouri State University. They also bring new viewpoints to classrooms. The cross-cultural bonds that form on campuses like his create more tolerance, he said, making the world a better place. For Timlin, that's what college is all about. "International students don't just shore up what we do," he said. "They're integral to what we do." Contributing: Sara Chernikoff and Jennifer Borresen Zachary Schermele is an education reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at zschermele@ Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele and Bluesky at @
USA Today
15-05-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Protesters, vaccines, budget cuts
Protesters, vaccines, budget cuts Good morning! 👋🏾 I'm Jane, Daily Briefing author. Starbucks workers are walking out over new dress code. Here's why. Quick look at Thursday's news: RFK grilled over vaccines, job cuts Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. defended President Donald Trump's proposed cuts to top health agencies as committee members in the House and Senate pummeled him with questions on controversial topics and spending. He testified before the House committee on appropriations the morning of May 14 and before the Senate's Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee in the afternoon. Nearly four months into his new job, Kennedy answered and dodged heated questions about vaccines, the measles outbreak and a recently approved spending bill. He noted that health agencies were handling the U.S. measles outbreak better than other nations have handled theirs, refusing to answer whether people should get shots for various vaccine-preventable diseases. Ben & Jerry's co-founder Ben Cohen was among the roughly half-dozen people yanked out of the Senate hearing for protesting Kennedy. Supreme Court takes up birthright citizenship: What's at stake? In what could be its biggest blockbuster case of the year, the Supreme Court on Thursday will take up one of President Donald Trump's most controversial executive orders: ending the guarantee of citizenship to virtually everyone born in the United States. Judges appointed by both Democratic and Republican presidents have put that change on hold, ruling it's likely unconstitutional. The Trump administration argues judges shouldn't be able to completely pause the president's policy while it's being challenged in court. Read more More news to know now "Perfecto": Wealthy Gulf rulers bring A-game to Trump charm offensive. Wealthy Gulf rulers bring A-game to Trump charm offensive. Trump official acknowledges 9 detainee deaths in ICE custody, disputes overspending. 9 detainee deaths in ICE custody, disputes overspending. Diddy trial recap: Cassie says she felt suicidal over Sean Combs' alleged abuse, rape. Cassie says she felt suicidal over Sean Combs' alleged abuse, rape. Ms. Rachel defends advocacy for Palestinian children amid backlash: "It's sad." What's the weather today? Check your local forecast here. International college students bring billions to the US. That may change. For scientists hoping to study in the United States, Europe has a clear message: Come here instead. It comes amid the Trump administration cutting research funding and detaining foreign-born students. EU leaders have launched a new initiative called "Choose Europe for Science,' a 500-million euro investment meant to attract foreign researchers and college students. In a thinly veiled swipe at Donald Trump, Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, noted that the new program stood in stark contrast to the state of research funding in other regions, where "the role of science in today's world is questioned." Read more Egg prices fell for the first time in months. Will they get cheaper? U.S. egg prices fell in April for the first time in months but remain high as a dozen Grade A eggs are still costing $5.12 on average, after hitting a record $6.23 in March. The drop represents the first month-to-month decline since October 2024. The series of price hikes were related to the bird flu outbreak. "Considering that we were at record level prices just a couple of months ago, I think this is a pretty big move," said economist Bernt Nelson. "We can't say that it'll necessarily stay this way, but for the near term, this is great." Read more Today's talkers See every game for all 32 teams in the 2025 NFL schedule The wait is over. The 2025 season schedule has been released for every NFL team. The NFL began rolling out the 2025 schedule with Monday's announcement of some key games, such as the 2025 season opener: The Dallas Cowboys, led by a healthy Dak Prescott, will face the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles. On Tuesday, the NFL revealed the NFL's international games. And now, USA TODAY Sports has each team's schedule available for you. Read more Photo of the day: Rare piebald elk spotted in Colorado A female elk with a unique brown and snow-white coat is turning heads in Colorado and beyond. Colorado Parks and Wildlife recently shared photographs of a rare elk, a piebald female cow, out in the wild."This rare genetic trait occurs in about 1 out of every 100,000 elk," the agency wrote in a May 12 Facebook post. "If you're lucky enough to catch a glimpse of her, remember to give her lots of space!" Read more
Yomiuri Shimbun
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Europe Pledges Half a Billion Euros to Lure Scientists as Trump Battles Universities
Pool photo / Reuters French President Emmanuel Macron, right, and European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen arrive to attend the 'Choose Europe for Science' event in the amphitheatre of the Sorbonne University in Paris on May 5. PARIS (Reuters) — The European Union and France on May 5 announced half a billion euros worth of incentives to lure scientists to the continent, seeking to profit from U.S. President Donald Trump's federal funding cuts and clashes with top U.S. universities. 'We call on researchers worldwide to unite and join us … If you love freedom, come and help us stay free,' French President Emmanuel Macron said at Paris' Sorbonne University alongside European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The money would fund research projects and help universities cover the cost of bringing foreign scientists over to help run them, officials said. Von der Leyen announced the €500 million ($566.6 million) incentive package and said she also wanted EU member states to invest 3% of gross domestic product in research and development by 2030. Macron pledged €100 million from France, though it was not immediately clear if this came on top of the EU pledge. 'Reverse brain drain' Robert N. Proctor, a historian at Stanford University, told Reuters that Trump was leading 'a libertarian right-wing assault on the scientific enterprise' that had been years in the making. 'We could well see a reverse brain drain,' he said. 'It's not just to Europe, but scholars are moving to Canada and Asia as well.' Meredith Whittaker, the president of encrypted messaging app Signal, declined to comment on geopolitical disputes. But she told Reuters it was inevitable top talent would gravitate to welcoming jurisdictions. 'I think researchers, people whose lives, whose inquiry, whose obsessions are motivated by particular questions, particular fields, who exist in a community of intellectual practice, will always be attracted to places where the ground is fertile for that work, where they're not threatened, and where their research isn't hampered or perverted,' she said. The threat to academics' livelihoods at U.S. universities including Yale, Columbia and Johns Hopkins has given Europe's political leaders hope they could reap an intellectual windfall. But with European universities far less wealthy than their U.S. peers, it remains to be seen if they can bridge the funding gap that is needed to attract top U.S. researchers. Last month, Macron and Von der Leyen said they would be looking to invite scientists and researchers from the world to Europe. In April, France also launched the 'Choose France for Science' platform, operated by the French National Research Agency, which enables universities, schools and research organizations to apply for cofunding from the government to host researchers.
