When 25-year-old biology student Yao’s PhD programme enrolment was deferred due to funding cuts at her US university, she joined a growing list of Chinese students exploring other destinations.
Visa revocations and university funding cuts by the administration of US President Donald Trump have become a source of anxiety for international students.
Those from China face additional challenges due to Washington’s tariff war with Beijing and the increasing vilification of Chinese citizens, students and industry insiders said.
“I used to think politics was far away from me. But this year, I really felt the impact of politics on international students,” Chicago-based Yao said, declining to give the name of her prospective university.
China had accounted for the biggest international student body in the US for 15 years, until it was overtaken by India last year.
However, since Trump returned to the White House, more than 4,700 students have been deleted from a US immigration database, making them vulnerable to deportation.
Chinese students have accounted for 14% of 327 visa revocation reports collected so far by the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
Last month, the US House’s select committee on China sent letters to six universities requesting information on enrolment policies for Chinese students in advanced STEM programmes, and questioning their involvement in federally funded research.
China’s foreign ministry urged the US to “stop brandishing national security as a false pretext” for discriminatory and restrictive measures targeting its students.
Duke University Professor Chen Yiran said the idea that Chinese students rush home to help Beijing compete with the US is a fallacy.
“Most of them still want to stay in the US,” Chen said. “They’re from middle-class families, they pay the millions (in yuan) for these few years; they want to get the investment back.”
Universities outside the US have since reported increased interest. Italy’s Bocconi University has received many queries from students, its Greater China country manager Summer Wu said.
In Hong Kong, visa arrangements that allow graduates to stay and seek employment have made the city a popular destination, the Chinese University of Hong Kong said. — Reuters
