In a sweeping and controversial move, the United States government under President Donald Trump has revoked Harvard University’s ability to admit Nigerian and other international students, citing ongoing disputes between the institution and the administration.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced the decision on Thursday, stating:
“Harvard can no longer enroll foreign students, and existing international students must transfer to another institution or risk losing their legal immigration status.”
This unprecedented action follows a months-long standoff between Harvard and the Trump administration over academic policies and governance.
At the center of the clash are Harvard’s refusal to audit faculty for plagiarism, report international students accused of misconduct regardless of severity, and its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives—policies the Trump administration has sought to dismantle.
As a result, the government froze $2.2 billion in federal grants to Harvard last month and warned earlier this month that the university would no longer be eligible for future research funding.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem framed the decision as a message to other academic institutions:
“Let this serve as a warning to all universities across the country.”
Harvard has condemned the decision as “unlawful and retaliatory,” warning that it poses a serious threat to both its academic mission and the broader U.S. education system.
“We are fully committed to supporting our international students and scholars, who come from over 140 countries and make invaluable contributions to Harvard and the nation,” the university said in a statement.
Harvard added that it is working rapidly to advise affected students and explore legal avenues to challenge the order.
For the 2024/2025 academic year, international students made up 27.2 percent of Harvard’s total student body. Now, many of them face sudden uncertainty about their education and immigration status.
One such student, Karl Molden, an Austrian junior at Harvard, voiced his frustration:
“Many of us have worked our entire lives to get to a university like Harvard, and now we’re stuck waiting to see if we’ll have to transfer or struggle with visa issues.”
He described international students as being “used as pawns in a larger ideological battle between democracy and authoritarianism.”
Prominent voices within Harvard have also pushed back. Jason Furman, an economics professor and former advisor to President Obama, decried the policy:
“It is impossible to imagine Harvard without our amazing international students. They are vital to innovation and to America’s leadership in global education.”
He called the decision “horrendous on every level,” stressing that higher education remains one of America’s most powerful tools of global influence.
As backlash grows, legal and political observers anticipate a fierce legal battle between Harvard and the federal government, with potential implications for other institutions and the future of international education in the U.S.
