Trump administration halts Harvard for enrolling International students

New Delhi (India) May 23: The administration of US President Donald Trump has taken away Harvard University's ability to accept foreign students under the federal Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), a federal government program. Through the SEVP, approved institutions can enroll international students and provide them with the paperwork they need to submit a visa application. 

If Harvard wants to regain its SEVP title, the administration has given it 72 hours to provide the needed documentation and fulfill other requirements.

Thousands of existing international students at Harvard were warned by the government that they would lose their legal right to remain in the US unless they transferred to another institution.

The university has about 6,800 international students enrolled, the majority of whom are in graduate programs, so the move might have significant consequences.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote that the Department of Homeland Security made this most recent decision because Harvard did not completely comply with the requests to provide documents regarding its international students.

Kristi Noem blamed Harvard for "perpetuating an unsafe campus environment that is hostile to Jewish students, promotes pro-Hamas sympathies and employs racist 'diversity, equity and inclusion' policies.”

According to Harvard, the actions violate the law and compromise the school's research objective.

Jason Newton, the director of media relations at Harvard said, “We are fully committed to maintaining Harvard’s ability to host our international students and scholars, who hail from more than 140 countries and enrich the university — and this nation — immeasurably.” 

“We are working quickly to provide guidance and support to members of our community. This retaliatory action threatens serious harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines Harvard’s academic and research mission.”

Another person familiar with Harvard's, who requested privacy, said it is also likely to lead to a second legal challenge from the university. Last month, the university filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration for attempting to change its hiring procedures, admissions procedures, and curriculum.

Students will be permitted to graduate if they finish their degrees this semester. According to Noem's letter, the changes would be applied for the 2025–2026 academic year.

But according to Noem, students who haven't finished their degrees must transfer to another university or risk losing their legal right to stay in the US.

Aadrika Tayal