The Trump administration has escalated its spat with the Ivy League institution by cutting off admissions to foreign students at Harvard University, forcing thousands of existing students to either leave the nation or transfer to another school.
Harvard, according to the DHS, has allowed “anti-American, pro-terrorist agitators” to attack Jewish students, resulting in a hostile school climate. The move was revealed on Thursday. Allegations surfaced that Harvard housed and trained members of a Chinese paramilitary force as late as 2024, leading to accusations of coordination with the Chinese Communist Party.
“Harvard cannot accept any more international students and all current international students are required to either transfer to another school or face deportation,” the agency stated.
More over 25% of Harvard’s student body consists of international students, who number around 6,800 on campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Graduate students from over a hundred different nations make up the majority.
Harvard has condemned the move as illegal and said its intention to offer students further instruction.
This retaliatory action undermines Harvard’s academic and research mission, and it risks substantial harm to the Harvard community and our country,” the institution stated in a statement.
The request made by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on April 16 is the source of the controversy. Harvard was ordered to disclose information on international students that may link them to rallies or acts of violence, which could result in their deportation, according to the letter.
“The unfortunate result of Harvard’s failure to comply with simple reporting requirements” is what Noem called the school’s reprimand in a letter he sent to Harvard on Thursday. This means that beginning with the 2025–26 academic year, Harvard will not be able to accept any overseas students.
Noem stated that within 72 hours, Harvard may resume hosting international students if it compiles a mountain of data on international students. All documentation, including audio and video recordings, of international students engaging in disruptive or otherwise risky behavior on campus is now part of her revised request.
“Harvard is being held accountable by this administration for its role in promoting violence, antisemitism, and campus coordination with the Chinese Communist Party,” Noem stated.
Harvard was no longer authorized to sponsor foreign students for student visas and U.S. enrollment after the administration removed the university’s certification in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program.
The Trump administration’s conflict with Harvard has entered a new chapter with Noem’s censure. Harvard, the oldest and wealthiest institution in the United States, was the pioneer in openly rejecting White House requests that it curtail pro-Palestinian demonstrations and do away with diversity, fairness, and inclusion initiatives.
Harvard has been left to foot the cost for a large portion of its expansive research enterprise after the federal government canceled $2.6 billion in funding. There have been rumors that the university’s tax-exempt status might be revoked by President Trump.
A federal antisemitic task group has imposed many sanctions on Harvard University, claiming that the school did not do enough to safeguard Jewish students from physical assault and harassment during the national wave of pro-Palestinian demonstrations.
In their announcement on Thursday, officials from the Department of Homeland Security repeated such worries. Among the instances given was a recent Harvard University internal study that indicated several Jewish students had experienced prejudice or discrimination while attending the university.
It also addressed Republican concerns voiced in Congress on Chinese links to American colleges. According to authorities from the Department of Homeland Security, the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps received instruction from Harvard as late as 2024. To back up its claims, it referenced a letter from House Republicans and a Fox News piece.
“Illegal, small-minded” overreach was the description given by American Council on Education president Ted Mitchell to the most recent development.
He expressed concern that the situation was discouraging overseas students from seeking education in the United States.
The system that monitors the legal status of foreign students has been used by the Trump administration to further its crackdown on universities. Since immigration officials were able to directly remove students’ legal status in the system, the database has transformed from an administrative tool into an enforcement instrument.
A national injunction prevented the administration from seeking more terminations, and restorations of status resulted from legal challenges to those efforts.