U.S. schools warn foreign students ‘be back in the country before Trump takes office’

A handful of prominent American universities are warning their international students to return to the country before Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20th if they make their way home for the holidays. 

According to Axios, at least ten universities, mainly on the East Coast of the U.S., have urged their international students to ensure that they have returned to the United States before Trump’s inauguration. 

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Included in the list of schools alerting students are the University of Southern California, the University of Pennsylvania, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Brown University, as well as many others.

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“A travel ban is likely to go into effect soon after inauguration,” Cornell’s Office of Global Learning warned the school's international students on the university’s website, asking them to be back in the U.S. by January 21st according to the New York Times. 

“The ban is likely to include citizens of the countries targeted in the first Trump administration: Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria, Myanmar, Sudan, Tanzania, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Syria, Venezuela, Yemen, and Somalia. New countries could be added to this list, particularly China and India,” the message added.

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Axios obtained an email sent by the University of Southern California to its students who had special visas. It noted classes in the new semester were expected to begin January 13th and to return before Trump took office. 

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The email told students that it was important to return “given that a new presidential administration will take office on January 20, 2025, and — as is common — may issue one or more Executive Orders impacting travel to the U.S. and visa processing."

"While there's no certainty such orders will be issued,” the email explained, “the safest way to avoid any challenges is to be physically present in the U.S. before the Spring semester.” But why was such a warning given?

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Trump promised to crack down on illegal immigration while on the campaign trail, and it is possible that on his first day in office, he could introduce an executive order that may make it difficult for some students to return according to Axios. 

During a May 2024 campaign rally in New Jersey, Trump promised he would deport any student deemed too radical for U.S. universities. “When I am president, we will not allow our colleges to be taken over by violent radicals,” he said according to NBC News. 

“If you come here from another country and try to bring jihadism or anti-Americanism or antisemitism to our campuses, we will immediately deport you,” Trump continued. 

There is no guarantee that any possible day-one executive order by Trump could hinder the return of international students to the United States. However, Trump has shown he is more than capable of introducing problematic policies. 

Axios pointed out that during Trump’s first term in office, he introduced his controversial 2017 ‘Muslin ban’ that limited the citizens of several muslin countries from entering the United States through executive order. 

“His 2017 ban was enacted right after his inauguration, stranding more than 17,000 students from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen,” The Baltimore Banner’s Allie Wolfe noted in a report on the current worries plaguing U.S. schools.

According to the Association of International Educators, roughly 1.1 million international students are studying in the United States contributing 43.3 billion to the U.S. economy and have created 378,175 jobs in the country. 

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How many of the international students studying in the United States will be affected by any possible policies Trump proposes on his first day back in office has yet to be seen. However, the country’s highest institutions don’t seem to be willing to take any chances. 

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