4% decline in foreign students
As the Trump administration cracks down on high-skilled immigration and the cost of a U.S. education soars, fewer foreigners chose to study in the U.S. from 2016 to 2017. The dip is largely attributed to a drop in the number of Indian graduate students in science and engineering programs — many of whom might otherwise end up working at Silicon Valley companies.
After several years of a steady increase, the number of international students seeking U.S. degrees fell about 4 percent, from 840,160 to 808,640, between 2016 and 2017, according to the
National Science Board, which analyzed the government’s student visa data in a report last month. The number of Indian graduate students enrolled in U.S. science and engineering programs tumbled 19 percent, from 95,950 to 77,500, during that time.
Concerns about staying in the U.S. after graduation have been rising as the Trump administration increases its scrutiny of H-1B visas, which are work permits that allow foreigners to live and work in the U.S. for a period of time. The majority of these visas go to Indian workers each year, and Silicon Valley companies rely on H-1B holders to fill many of their jobs. For example, H-1B holders accounted for more than 15 percent of Facebook’s workforce in 2016, according to a Reuters analysis.
“If you don’t feel like you can work after graduation, you might be less likely to come to the U.S. in the first place,” said Stuart Anderson, executive director of the National Foundation for American Policy, which published an analysis of the National Science Board data Thursday.
Not all categories of foreigners are seeing a decline. The number of Chinese undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in U.S. universities in 2017 increased by about 1.4 percent compared with a year earlier, and the number of Indian undergraduate students coming to the U.S. also increased slightly.
In the Bay Area, where the hope of working in Silicon Valley is still a major draw around the world, some universities are still attracting plenty of international students.
Susan Popko, associate provost for international programs at Santa Clara University, said the private university is not seeing a decline in international students — even among Indians seeking science and engineering degrees.
“We’re bucking all international trends,” she said “About 60 percent of our (international) students plan to work in the valley after graduation, so I think that is still the draw.”
But if the administration continues to crack down on high-skilled immigration, the decline in international students will become more pronounced, said Jill Welch, deputy executive director of public policy at NAFSA: Association of International Educators.
She noted that other countries, such as Canada, offer fast-track permanent residency to foreigners with certain skills. But in the U.S., she said, the government is not being proactive enough in maintaining the inflow of highly skilled immigrants.
“U.S. universities and colleges are working hard to maintain their interests,” Welch said. “But Congress should (also) focus on welcoming common sense immigration politics, and not those that send a message that we don’t want immigrants here.”