US colleges report 20% drop in foreign students over Trump’s visa clampdown

[WASHINGTON] The number of new foreign undergraduate students at US colleges dropped by an average of 20 per cent this spring from a year earlier, according to a study by a coalition of education groups, the latest sign that President Donald Trump’s standoff with higher education is hammering a key source of talent and funding.

The findings, published in a report on Monday (May 11) by organisations including the US international education group Nafsa, are based on a survey of 149 American schools. Some 62 per cent of those schools reported lower foreign enrolment in both undergraduate and graduate programmes compared to spring 2025.

International students, who often pay full tuition, are a key source of revenue for universities, especially given declining domestic demographics. The Trump administration has cracked down on foreign student enrolment as part of its broader pressure campaign to reshape higher education and restrict immigration pathways.

Though fewer students begin college in the spring, the semester’s enrolment trends are a bellwether for the higher-volume fall cohort. If international enrolment falls by anywhere near 20 per cent in the fall, some colleges could face serious budget shortfalls.

The turning point for US schools came last spring, when Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested and detained dozens of foreign students, sometimes on campus or in their dorm rooms, and revoked the legal residency of thousands more. Most had their status restored after the administration lost a series of court challenges, but the crackdown had a lasting impact.

While overall international enrolment in the US dropped by 1.4 per cent last fall from a year earlier, most students entering college then began their application process before the White House escalated its campaign to curb foreign enrolment. It was not until March that ICE agents began targeting students, and May when the State Department paused student visa interviews during the peak period for processing in order to roll out strict new review policies in June.

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In the survey, 84 per cent of US schools pointed to “restrictive government policies” as the main reason for the decline, and more than a third say the drop will likely lead to budget cuts. Last summer, student visa issuances fell by 36 per cent.

The Nafsa survey, conducted in partnership with other international education groups, solicited responses from hundreds of colleges across the world, including Canada, Australia and the UK, three other major destinations for international students. Those countries, citing restrictive immigration policies, also reported declines in international enrolment this spring. Colleges in Europe and Asia, on the other hand, say international enrolment increased. BLOOMBERG