Trump’s Election Sparks Visa Concerns for International Students
Students expressed fears that the new administration could make it harder to obtain the visas that allow them to study and work in the U.S. after graduation, and the college encouraged them to return for the Spring semester before Trump’s inauguration over fears of day-one travel restrictions.
International students are concerned about their ability to stay in the United States following Donald Trump’s reelection. Trump’s rhetoric surrounding paths to citizenship, including his calls for a restriction of visas, has given students and administration reason to worry.
In the two weeks after the election, the Office of Immigration Services sent out multiple emails to international students, one of which recommended that they return to campus before Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, over fears that Trump could enforce new immigration restrictions on the first day of his term.
Initially, Community Living restricted international students’ ability to stay on campus between Dec. 21 and Jan. 2 this year. Following student backlash, the decision was reversed.
Raine Kamilova ’28, an international student from Uzbekistan, said their country’s rocky relationship with the U.S. forces them into exclusively one-year visas, which leaves them with the decision to either go back and renew each year or remain in the U.S. indefinitely.
Considering the Trump administration’s history of limiting entry for students from specific countries, Kamilova is concerned that their visa may not get renewed if they were to return home.
“For individuals in this situation, it’s tough. It is scary to go back home and re-apply for a visa because under Trump, visa rejection rates are higher than normal, especially in developing or Muslim countries,” Kamilova said. In Uzbekistan, the rejection rates are the highest in the region, at around 60%. Kamilova expects that the rate will only go up.
Héloïse Hughes ’27, an international student from Switzerland, similarly said she was worried about maintaining her student visa. Hughes said Trump’s past actions mean “that he can and will try to make it very difficult to make people like [her] to finish their studies.”
On a tech podcast this summer, Trump said he would offer green cards to foreign students attending school in the U.S. once they graduate. However, it is unclear whether this promise will become policy, due to the anti-immigration sentiment of his campaign, such as his promise for “mass deportations” across the country.
Sofiia Syzonenko ’27, an international student from Ukraine, is considering applying for a U.S. work visa after graduation. However, during the new presidency, she thinks it will be difficult to acquire one — Trump’s previous term denied a significant amount of work visas.
For the time being, students said they want the college to continue to provide support to international students.
Kamilova said the college should give discounted housing or funding for students to stay on campus during breaks.
“We can’t go back home, but it would be nice to see if Amherst makes the effort to give us a ‘home’ in the United States,” Kamilova said.
Hughes added that she hopes the college “prioritizes and supports their international students and fights in order to make sure that international student admissions do not diminish over the next few years.”
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