The US travel ban would be bad news for American universities
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Version 0 of 1. When Donald Trump issued his shambolic and destructive executive order shortly after his inauguration, attempting to suspend immigration to the US from seven Muslim-majority countries, the shockwaves were swift and far-reaching. Objections have come from campuses all over the country, and with good reason. The ban clearly affects Muslims, including current and prospective students, but its reach (even after clarifications on green-card holders) is far wider. Alongside other visa changes being mooted and talk of “extreme vetting” it makes for a disturbing climate. It has been heartening see universities at the forefront of confronting this. Last week a group of America’s leading universities, including Yale, Harvard and Stanford, filed papers in a Brooklyn federal court challenging the travel ban. The 17 institutions explained that as well as affecting current students and staff, including many stranded and unable to re-enter the US in the immediate aftermath, the ban harms colleges’ ability to recruit international talent. Referring to the order as having “serious and chilling implications”, the group highlighted a key consequence – that it “casts doubt on the prospects and value of studying and working here for everyone”. They pointed out that if students were worried about a visa being revoked “at any moment” then they would not bring their skills to the US. In an atmosphere of political disruption with policies that seem to go against the interests of institutions, students or indeed wider society, such fears and anxieties are wholly justified. Brexit turmoil in the UK demonstrates the perils of political instability and uncertainty around international study. The future of the EU student exchange programme, Erasmus Plus, through which thousands of British students study in Europe every year, is unclear while concerns about further restrictions from the Home Office on student visas persist. International students, researchers and faculty have for decades chosen to study, live and work in the US above other countries, and they have been welcomed as enriching the country’s economy, culture and institutions. As the beneficiary of three scholarships, I’ve experienced this first-hand. The US has been a beacon of openness for students, whatever their place of origin. That the country has benefited enormously from this approach economically, and through research and innovation across disciplines is clear. According to the Institute of International Education’s annual report, Open Doors, in 2015-16 there were more than a million international students enrolled in US colleges and Universities, up 7.1% on the previous year and the 10th consecutive annual rise. They account for about 5% of the 20 million students in higher education. The report estimates that in the 2015-16 academic year the presence of these students contributed more than $30bn (£24bn) to the US economy based on Department of Commerce figures. Nafsa: Association of International Educators says international students supported more than 400,000 jobs in the US during the same period. Nafsa’s CEO, Esther Brimmer, says more will be known in a few months about the fallout from the ban when international student applications for the next academic year are tallied, but she says anecdotal evidence suggests significant worries on campuses about the future. There is a lot at stake. Brimmer highlights for example the merits of international exchange, including fostering understanding between people from different backgrounds and nations. That may be harder to quantify than jobs, earnings or research results but it is a valuable benefit. These are unprecedented and unpredictable times and if the impression created by erratic, misguided moves such as Trump’s ban is that international students are no longer welcome, that’s a huge problem. If the most popular country for international students is no longer a standard bearer for the core values of international education, namely that the flow of students, researchers and teachers helps build bridges across counties and cultures, then in an era of populist nationalism these principles are at risk of being fundamentally undermined everywhere. •Mary O’Hara is a journalist, Fulbright scholar and author of the book Austerity Bites |