“Unprecedented doesn’t even get close to where we are”, said NAFSA senior impact officer Joann Ng Hartmann, recounting the “assault” unleashed by the Trump administration on international students in the US.
Following countless visa restrictions and hostile policies, leaders warned of potential incoming threats to Optional Practical Training (OPT) as well as the anticipated end to duration of status – something Hartmann said college leaders should be preparing students for on campus.
Delegates heard powerful calls for litigation and advocacy to challenge forthcoming policies, though leaders recognised the potential threat of retribution for institutions that speak up, as well as the high costs of legal action.
“It’s been really awesome to see the calls for action, the letter writing… but one of the issues is the fear of retribution, which we know is happening,” said Hartmann: “It is so hard for institutions at this moment not to be in the spotlight if they raise their hand.”
Faced with an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty, Hartmann emphasised the importance of “slow and steady” advocacy: “understanding the landscape and working our channels”.
At the same time, speakers doubled down on sustainable partnerships that can withstand policy changes, with Hartmann declaring: “Administrations come and go, we’ve weathered many situations before, and we will weather this”.
Sammer Jones, director for global relations at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, (UIUC) said her institution had been focussing on creating partnerships “not for transaction, but partnerships that are sustainable”.
According to Jones, the university is prioritising multilateral partnerships with three or four institutions together, as well as expanding its hybrid models including 2+2 undergraduate courses.
“All of this came from Covid, so I’d say there’s an opportunity here to redefine how we think about international education,” said Sammer.
While warning that next year’s enrolment picture would show the full impact of current policies, Sammer highlighted the success of post-Pandemic diversification strategies at UIUC where international enrolments remained steady this year, with China, Taiwan, Korea and India comprising the four largest markets.
“When we looked at our international portfolio, we were highly engaged in Asia and Europe… so diversification meant for us going into places like Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East,” she said.
Amid unprecedented policy turbulence in the US, US universities recorded a 17% decline in new international enrolments this fall, though total international enrolments only decreased by 1%, primarily due to the continued rise in OPT.
While the 2025 data does not account for students’ country of origin, anecdotal reports have pointed to large losses in Chinese and Indian graduate students, while several universities have had success in smaller markets such as Vietnam and Nepal.
The time calls for your own definition of what a partnership is and what TNE looks like for your institution
Joann Ng Hartmann, NAFSA
Addressing conference delegates, Lehigh University vice president Cheryl Matherly picked out Vietnam as the institution’s most resilient source market, mirroring nationwide trends in which 55% of universities indicated prioritising undergraduate outreach in the country, according to IIE.
And yet, Matherly raised sector-wide concerns about declining graduate enrolments from key markets such as Iran – a traditional stream of PhD engineering students to Lehigh which has been cut off under Trump’s travel ban.
Last week, secretary of homeland security Kristi Noem, announced Trump’s travel ban would be expanded to “over 30” countries – up from the full or partial restrictions currently impacting 19 nations.
While the administration provided no further details about which countries would be affected, the news has triggered alarm about more visa barriers that could hamper universities’ diversification strategies.
In the face of further hostility, across the board speakers emphasised the importance of creative cross-border partnerships – with Matherly highlighting several “bright and exciting” opportunities emerging from the current moment, including more targeted regional partnerships.
Despite widespread resource, staffing and budget constraints, Hartmann said institutions must be bold, “otherwise you’re going to fall behind”, she warned.
“The time calls for your own definition of what a partnership is and what TNE looks like for your institution,” said Hartmann, highlighting innovative solutions such as new 5+1 models for master’s programs to mitigate the impact of declining graduate numbers.
“TNE is the hot topic right now, but it’s still a little confusing for the US,” said AIEA CEO Clare Overmann.
Despite the perception of US institutions having “almost no appetite” for TNE, Overmann highlighted new data showing that American institutions remained the top exporters of satellite campuses around the world.
What’s more, alongside recruitment, Sammer highlighted the efforts of universities to support international students already on campus, including a dedicated webpage set up by UIUC to unpack federal policy updates for the international community.
Matherly reiterated the need for clear, factual communication without feeding the hysteria, urging colleagues to “keep calm and try to be factual”, as well as continuing to emphasise the contributions of international students across campuses.
