International student arrivals take a dive under Trump

The number of international student arrivals in the United States fell by nearly a fifth at the start of this academic year, according to federal data, the latest sign of a blow to foreign student enrollment at universities as the Trump administration has stepped up scrutiny of their visas.

International visitors arriving in the United States on student visas were down 19% in August compared to the same month in 2024, according to preliminary data released by the National Travel and Tourism Office. Figures also fell in June and July, but August is the summer month which typically sees the highest number of international student arrivals – 313,138 this year.

As the federal government cracks down on student visitors, industry groups have warned that declining international enrollment threatens school budgets and the standing of U.S. universities around the world. Although the extent of the change remains to be seen, the new data suggests a turnaround in international enrollments that were rebounding in the United States after a decline worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic.

About 1.1 million international students were in the United States last year — a key revenue source for tuition-funded colleges. International students are not eligible for federal financial aid and many pay full tuition.

Photography in California

Many California campuses, including the University of California system, have not yet released fall enrollment data but have prepared for potential hurdles in attracting international students.

For fall 2025 admissions — not enrollment — UC said its nine undergraduate campuses offered spots to an additional 3,263 first-year international students, an increase of 17% from last year, according to data released over the summer. UC also admitted 100,947 freshmen from California, an increase of more than 7 percent from last year.

UC said it increased international admissions due to “increasing uncertainty about their likelihood of enrolling.” He noted that the share of accepted internationals who choose to enroll is generally “considerably lower” than that of California residents and that the cost of being a non-Californian at UC has increased. Last year, the UC Board of Regents approved a 10 percent increase in “nonresident” tuition, from $34,200 to $37,602.

At USC, the California campus that typically attracts the largest share of international students to the state, concerns have also been raised about a potential decline in international student enrollment.

The campus saw a slight decline in total international enrollment, from 12,374 last academic year to 11,959 this fall. Chinese and Indian students made up more than half of the total foreign population, consistent with statewide trends.

But USC has also expanded its international freshman community, according to university data on this fall’s new undergraduate class.

Of the 3,759 new freshmen enrolled this fall, about 21 percent, or 789, are international. Last year, about 17 percent of 3,489 freshmen — 593 — were in the United States on visas.

California generally attracts the largest international academic community of any state. In 2024, besides USC, the biggest draws were UC Berkeley, which enrolled 12,441 students; UC San Diego, 10,467 students; and UCLA, 10,446 students, according to data from the Institute of International Education. STEM fields – science, technology, engineering and mathematics – were the most popular.

Visa difficulties and travel bans have stranded some students

Nationally, many students who planned to study in the United States were unable to enter the country due to difficulties obtaining visas. In late May, the State Department suspended scheduling of visa interviews for international students, which resumed three weeks later with new rules for monitoring visa applicants’ social media accounts.

The timing of the break had “the maximum possible impact” on visa issuance for the fall semester, said Clay Harmon, executive director of the Assn. of International Enrollment Management, a non-profit association.

The travel ban and other restrictions for 19 countries announced by the Trump administration in June have created even more uncertainty for some students. Most of the countries targeted by the ban were located in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

Federal data on international declines shows these regions saw the largest declines in international student arrivals in August, with declines of 33% in Africa, 17% in the Middle East and 24% in Asia — including a 45% drop in India, the country that sends the most students to the United States.

The data includes new as well as returning students, but some who were already in the United States avoided traveling out of the country this summer for fear of problems returning.

Students worry about political climate, funding and research costs

Some international students and their families are wary of the Trump administration’s broader crackdown on immigration. In the spring, the federal government stripped thousands of international students of their legal status, sparking panic before the Trump administration reversed course. Trump also called on universities to reduce their reliance on foreign students and cap international enrollment.

Syed Tamim Ahmad, a UCLA graduate who grew up in Dubai, said he was considering applying to medical school in the United States before last spring, when sudden cancellations of student visas and government suspensions of research funding at Harvard and other elite campuses began to intensify.

“When I was a freshman, it seemed like of all the countries, the United States offered the most opportunities in terms of access to research funding and resources,” said Ahmad, whose major is physiological science. “But in my senior year, a lot of those pull factors became push factors. Funding was cut, affecting labs, and international students are afraid of what they post on social media and what they put online. That sense of free speech is not the same in the United States.”

Ahmad is now planning to enroll in medical school in Australia.

“There is a similar feeling among many students: If they want to go to graduate school or continue their education, they should go outside the United States,” said Ahmad, who previously served on UCLA’s undergraduate student government as an international representative. “But that’s not the case for everyone. There are also still many people who believe there are good opportunities for them in the United States.”

Zeynep Bowlus, a higher education consultant in Istanbul, said interest in American colleges among the families she works with has waned in recent years, largely for financial reasons and skepticism about the value of an American degree. Policy changes in the United States are adding to their concerns, she said.

“I try not to make things too dramatic, but at the same time, I explain to them the reality of what’s going on and the potential obstacles they might face,” Bowlus said.

Institutions in other countries have seized the opportunity to attract students who might warm to the United States. An increasing number of Chinese students have chosen to stay in Asia and international applications to UK universities have increased.

Elisabeth Marksteiner, a higher education consultant in Cambridge, England, said she would encourage families considering U.S. colleges to approach the admissions process with more caution. A student visa has never been guaranteed, but now it’s especially important for families to have a backup plan, she said.

“I think there’s an assumption that everything is going to continue as it has in the past,” Marksteiner said. “I assume that’s not the case.”

Kaleem is a staff writer for The Times. Seminera and Keller write for the Associated Press.