Harvard foreign student enrolments blocked by Trump administration
The move is a major escalation of the Trump administration’s campaign against the Ivy League university
22 May 2025 - 21:40
byRyan Patrick Jones
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The Business School campus of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the US, April 15 2025. Picture: REUTERS/FAITH NINIVAGGI
Bengaluru — US President Donald Trump’s administration has revoked Harvard University’s ability to enrol international students, and will force existing students to transfer to other schools or lose their legal status, the department of homeland security said on Thursday.
Homeland security secretary Kristi Noem ordered the department to terminate the Harvard University’s student and exchange visitor programme (SEVP) certification, the department said in a statement.
Harvard called the action illegal.
The move comes after Harvard refused to provide information Noem had previously demanded about some foreign student visa holders who attend the university, the department said.
“This administration is holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, anti-Semitism and co-ordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus,” Noem said.
“It is a privilege, not a right, for universities to enrol foreign students and benefit from their higher tuition payments to help pad their multibillion-dollar endowments.”
US department of homeland security secretary Kristi Noem at the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut, the US, May 21 2025. Picture: MICHELLE MCLOUGHLIN/ REUTERS
Harvard said the move a retaliatory action that threatens serious harm to the university.
“The government’s action is unlawful. We are fully committed to maintaining Harvard’s ability to host international students and scholars, who hail from more than 140 countries and enrich the university — and this nation — immeasurably,” the university said in a statement.
The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The move marks a major escalation of the Trump administration’s campaign against the elite Ivy League university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which has emerged as one of Trump’s most prominent institutional targets.
The Republican president has undertaken an extraordinary effort to revamp private colleges and schools across the US that he says foster anti-American, Marxist and “radical left” ideologies. He has criticised Harvard in particular for hiring prominent Democrats to teaching or leadership positions.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Harvard foreign student enrolments blocked by Trump administration
The move is a major escalation of the Trump administration’s campaign against the Ivy League university
Bengaluru — US President Donald Trump’s administration has revoked Harvard University’s ability to enrol international students, and will force existing students to transfer to other schools or lose their legal status, the department of homeland security said on Thursday.
Homeland security secretary Kristi Noem ordered the department to terminate the Harvard University’s student and exchange visitor programme (SEVP) certification, the department said in a statement.
Harvard called the action illegal.
The move comes after Harvard refused to provide information Noem had previously demanded about some foreign student visa holders who attend the university, the department said.
“This administration is holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, anti-Semitism and co-ordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus,” Noem said.
“It is a privilege, not a right, for universities to enrol foreign students and benefit from their higher tuition payments to help pad their multibillion-dollar endowments.”
Harvard said the move a retaliatory action that threatens serious harm to the university.
“The government’s action is unlawful. We are fully committed to maintaining Harvard’s ability to host international students and scholars, who hail from more than 140 countries and enrich the university — and this nation — immeasurably,” the university said in a statement.
The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The move marks a major escalation of the Trump administration’s campaign against the elite Ivy League university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which has emerged as one of Trump’s most prominent institutional targets.
The Republican president has undertaken an extraordinary effort to revamp private colleges and schools across the US that he says foster anti-American, Marxist and “radical left” ideologies. He has criticised Harvard in particular for hiring prominent Democrats to teaching or leadership positions.
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