Latest news with #PhDstudent
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
US resumes visas for foreign students but demands access to social media accounts
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. State Department said Wednesday it is restarting the suspended process for foreigners applying for student visas but all applicants will now be required to unlock their social media accounts for government review. The department said consular officers will be on the lookout for posts and messages that could be deemed hostile to the United States, its government, culture, institutions or founding principles. In a notice made public Wednesday, the department said it had rescinded its May suspension of student visa processing but said new applicants who refuse to set their social media accounts to 'public' and allow them to be reviewed may be rejected. It said a refusal to do so could be a sign they are trying to evade the requirement or hide their online activity. The Trump administration last month temporarily halted the scheduling of new visa interviews for foreign students hoping to study in the U.S. while preparing to expand the screening of their activity on social media, officials said. Students around the world have been waiting anxiously for U.S. consulates to reopen appointments for visa interviews, as the window left to book their travel and make housing arrangements narrows ahead of the start of the school year. On Wednesday afternoon, a 27-year-old Ph.D. student in Toronto was able to secure an appointment for a visa interview next week. The student, a Chinese national, hopes to travel to the U.S. for a research internship that would start in late July. 'I'm really relieved,' said the student, who spoke on condition of being identified only by his surname, Chen, because he was concerned about being targeted. 'I've been refreshing the website couple of times every day.' Students from China, India, Mexico and the Philippines have posted on social media sites that they have been monitoring visa booking websites and closely watching press briefings of the State Department to get any indication of when appointment scheduling might resume. In reopening the visa process, the State Department also told consulates to prioritize students hoping to enroll at colleges where foreigners make up less than 15% of the student body, a U.S. official familiar with the matter said. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to detail information that has not been made public. Foreign students make up more than 15% of the total student body at almost 200 U.S. universities, according to an Associated Press analysis of federal education data from 2023. Most are private universities, including all eight Ivy League schools. But that criteria also includes 26 public universities, including the University of Illinois and Pennsylvania State University. Looking only at undergraduate students, foreign students make up more than 15% of the population at about 100 universities, almost all of them private. International students in the U.S. have been facing increased scrutiny on several fronts. In the spring, the Trump administration revoked permission to study in the U.S. for thousands of students, including some involved only in traffic offenses, before abruptly reversing course. The government also expanded the grounds on which foreign students can have their legal status terminated. As part of a pressure campaign targeting Harvard University, the Trump administration has moved to block foreign students from attending the Ivy League school, which counts on international students for tuition dollars and a quarter of its enrollment. Trump has said Harvard should cap its foreign enrollment at 15%. This latest move to vet students' social media, the State Department said Wednesday, "will ensure we are properly screening every single person attempting to visit our country.' In internal guidance sent to consular officers, the department said they should be looking for 'any indications of hostility toward the citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles of the United States.' Jameel Jaffer, executive director at the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, said the new policy evokes the ideological vetting of the Cold War, when prominent artists and intellectuals were excluded from the U.S. 'This policy makes a censor of every consular officer, and it will inevitably chill legitimate political speech both inside and outside the United States," Jaffer said. The Trump administration also has called for 36 countries to commit to improving vetting of travelers or face a ban on their citizens visiting the United States. A weekend diplomatic cable sent by the State Department says the countries have 60 days to address U.S. concerns or risk being added to a travel ban that now includes 12 nations. ___ AP Education Writer Collin Binkley contributed to this report. Matthew Lee And Albee Zhang, The Associated Press
Washington Post
a day ago
- General
- Washington Post
Miss Manners: Paging the public transit police
Dear Miss Manners: I am a Ph.D. student in a college town where the local public bus also serves as the campus bus, and students get free fare. As a result, it is often very crowded, mostly with undergrads. At my advanced age of 30, I have learned (or at least thought I'd learned) that on a very crowded bus, it is accepted practice to get off the bus briefly to let other people off if you are blocking the door. It seems, however, that NO ONE does this. Undergrads stand there blocking the door while five to 10 people try to get off. They are dumbstruck, as if there is no solution to the predicament they find themselves in. This is exacerbated by the fact that everyone is wearing headphones (including me, to be fair). I've been putting up with this for years. Recently, in a fit of agitation, I yelled 'MOVE!' at people blocking the door, in a tone similar to a cow. This didn't feel great. Am I correct that getting off the bus briefly is the best practice here? If so, do you have any ideas on how I can politely impart this knowledge to these new-to-the-bus riders? To be fair to these poor kids, one time I found myself blocking the door, so I stepped off — and the bus tried to leave without me. I was forced to yell for the driver to wait (which he did). I think they're just afraid of this happening, and are too scared or inexperienced to communicate with the driver. It would indeed be easier if people stepped off the bus, but Miss Manners fears that no one is going to deputize you as the bus police, so you will have to concentrate on getting out yourself. Most people are embarrassed to raise their voices in public and therefore equate it with being rude. But one can speak loudly — shout, even — in a noisy environment without therefore having to resort to mooing or worse. 'COMING OUT, PLEASE!' works. You can also try to ease your way by warning the person in front of you that yours is the next stop — although you will then be stuck when they tell you that they are also getting off there. If you do step off to allow others to exit, hold the bus door open for those disembarking. Dear Miss Manners: An old friend got in touch after some years apart and said she would like to come visit. That's great with me, but I am wondering how best to entertain her since we haven't seen one another in years. Is it polite to inquire ahead what she would like to drink? I don't want to imply that I think she has to have alcohol, although in the 'old days,' the question 'Beer, wine or whiskey?' seemed perfectly normal. What's the best way to put it? Pick something more neutral from your shared past and ask if she still enjoys that. Miss Manners expects her to be charmed that you remember — even if you get it wrong. New Miss Manners columns are posted Monday through Saturday on You can send questions to Miss Manners at her website, You can also follow her @RealMissManners. © 2025 Judith Martin
