The prestigious Harvard University may no longer accept foreign students with immediate effect, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security confirmed on Thursday. This further escalates the dispute between the university and the government of President Donald Trump.
“It is a privilege for universities to accept foreign students and profit from their higher tuition fees. This right is hereby revoked,” Minister Kristi Noem writes in a letter to the university. Noem also posted the letter on X.
According to Noem, the government holds Harvard accountable for “promoting violence and anti-Semitism on campus, and conspiring with the Chinese Communist Party.” Due to the measure, the university will not be able to accept new foreign students in the coming academic year. Foreign students who are in the United States with an academic visa risk losing that status and may then have to change universities.
The American government recently requested a list of students at Harvard of foreign origin. The government also demanded “any form of evidence of illegal activities” on university grounds by students and staff. “If Harvard wants the right to admit foreign students back, it must hand over this information within 72 hours,” Noem writes.
Harvard will challenge the decision in court, the university said in a statement. According to Harvard, there are students and researchers from more than 140 countries affiliated with the university.
Harvard and the Trump administration have been at odds for some time. The government froze $2.2 billion (more than 1.9 billion euros) in government funding for the university last month. That happened after Harvard refused to comply with demands from the government. It wants Harvard to reform its leadership and governance. The university should also revise its admission policy and its vision on diversity. In addition, some student associations should no longer be recognized.