Confused and nervous, Singapore students at Harvard told to ‘wait for updates’ on US ban
[WASHINGTON] The news arrived quietly on his mobile phone, that Harvard University has been barred from enrolling international students. This means his ability to finish his degree there, the culmination of a lifetime of work, is now in jeopardy.
The student, who declined to give his name given the sensitivities involved, is one of over 150 Singaporeans enrolled at the university.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced on Thursday (May 22) that Harvard’s Student and Exchange Visitor Programme certification has been revoked with immediate effect. This affects nearly 6,800 international students, who would have to transfer or face deportation.
“(Harvard) has always been a dream of mine, and I’m happy to have had the chance to experience it at least, though I don’t know how much longer that’s going to last,” the Singaporean student told The Straits Times. “It’s sad to think that these opportunities might not be available for others.”
Throughout the day, his phone buzzed constantly – professors checking in, classmates offering support. But the university’s guidance has been limited. “Wait for updates,” students have been told. In the meantime, he has cancelled a long-anticipated trip home.
The US administration’s decision marked the latest escalation in a broader campaign to reshape the landscape of American higher education, by directly targeting one of the country’s most prestigious universities and its ability to draw top talent from around the world.
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President Donald Trump claims private colleges and schools across the US foster anti-American, Marxist and “radical left” ideologies.
By midday, the leafy campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts, was restless. Students rang up their embassies and flooded the inbox of the international student offices.
“The current sentiment is mostly just confusion, and maybe a bit of nervousness, because it’s all quite unprecedented, so nobody really knows what’s going on,” said another Singaporean student, this one at Harvard Law School.
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“We’ve tried to get in contact with the Singapore embassy in DC, and they’re working on some sort of solution, I understand, but nothing firm yet, so we’re all waiting out to see what’s going to happen.”
A senior at Harvard College added that the biggest blow is the unpredictability the situation brings.
Said the Singaporean: “My own response was disbelief, and a little bit of shock. The hardest part about all of this is the unpredictability of the situation, which makes it really hard for anyone to plan out how their lives will look in school, and in the US in the short to medium-term...
“My friends, even though they are graduating, their visa and job statuses are in limbo, and they are very concerned about that.”
The graduating student said the ruling may have future ramifications on American higher education, in terms of what students can or cannot say, and what they can or cannot do.
The showdown between Harvard and the Trump administration had been building for months. In April, the university filed a lawsuit challenging federal attempts to reshape its curriculum, admissions policies and hiring practices, a move Harvard called a clear violation of academic freedom.
In response, the administration froze US$2.3 billion in federal funds to the university and threatened to revoke its tax-exempt status, citing concerns over campus safety, allegations of anti-Semitism and claims that the university coordinated with the Communist Party of China. Harvard officials vehemently denied the accusations.
The university slammed the Trump administration’s move to revoke its right to enrol foreign nationals as “unlawful”, and said it would cause “serious harm” to both the campus and the country as a whole.
“Harvard deeply values the contributions of our international students and scholars, who come from around the world to teach, learn and engage in transformative research on our campus. We see the talent, passion and dedication they bring to their work every day, with benefits not only for Harvard, but also for the United States and the world,” the university said in a statement.
International students now make up more than a quarter of Harvard’s student body – a marked increase from 19.7 per cent in 2010. Many pay the full cost of attendance, which climbs to nearly US$87,000 a year when room and board are included. Their presence helps sustain the university’s finances.
While Harvard maintains a need-blind admission policy for all students, regardless of nationality, tuition fees from international students helps support financial aid programmes and faculty research.
The uncertainty at Harvard has rippled across the higher-education landscape. Other universities are watching warily, aware they could be next. On May 14, Columbia University in New York issued a statement of concern to its students, staff and alumni.
“Many of our students from abroad are facing new logistical hurdles and challenges to their ability to study at Columbia,” said its acting president Claire Shipman. “The university has responded with expanded advising, emergency aid and legal resources, but the path forward remains uncertain for many of these vital members of our community.”
For now, the gates at Harvard remain open. But across campus, and across the country, a generation of students are holding their breaths, uncertain whether the nation that invited them to learn will still allow them to stay. THE STRAITS TIMES
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