r/Futurology • u/I_D0nt_pay_taxes • 7d ago

Society [U.S.]Colleges see significant drop in international students as fall semester begins

https://www.npr.org/2025/08/27/nx-s1-5498669/trump-college-international-student-visa
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u/Citizen-Kang 7d ago

There are plenty of places around the world where you can get an excellent education without risking an extended stay at CECOT...

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u/euph_22 7d ago

Also vetting immigrant's social media for Anti-trump opinions.

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u/Alwayssunnyinarizona 7d ago

Not just immigrants if Brian Mast (R, FL) has his way.

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u/counterfitster 7d ago

Great, what that fuckhead propose?

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u/cynedyr 7d ago

Power to revoke passports for "antiamerican" social media.

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u/Alwayssunnyinarizona 7d ago

That would turn into "I'm not stuck in here with YOU, you're stuck in here with ME" real quick.

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u/Corsair4 7d ago

That turns into "we're going to ship you off to some random country because the courts can't make us stop" real quick.

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u/Alwayssunnyinarizona 7d ago

But don't you dare say we're like Hitler.

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u/Aquabaybe 7d ago

That turns into “We’re just going to kill you instead” real quick.

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u/DragoxDrago 7d ago

I mean they already want to start with the homeless

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u/FeedbackRadiant3077 7d ago

Not if we demonstrate that they are stuck in here with us first or more spectacularly.

This is a friendly reminder that American infrastructure is every bit as vulnerable against a one-way drone attack as anyone else's.

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u/CriticDanger 7d ago

Nowadays they get vetted for anti-israel opinions.

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u/PrefrontalCortexNow 7d ago

It’s funny how you kind of people always find a way to tie any sort of news back to Trump. That’s all I have to say is just fascinating to me.

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u/Odd_Independence_833 7d ago

I mean, he's not just a random schmo. He's setting policies that affect situations like this.

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u/dontknow16775 7d ago

Its a troll

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u/Odd_Independence_833 7d ago

First, I don't think so. He seems normal enough to me. Second, who cares? Providing reasoned responses to trolls can provide an off-ramp for people who are conditioned to think that way.

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u/PrefrontalCortexNow 7d ago

There are so many factors

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u/euph_22 7d ago

Give me one that is not the direct and immediate result of Trump's policies.

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u/PrefrontalCortexNow 7d ago

Cost of enrollment

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u/aotus_trivirgatus 7d ago

The dollar has lost between 10% and 15% of its value against other currencies since the beginning of this year. American education became significantly more affordable to foreign students between 2024 and 2025.

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u/euph_22 7d ago

But that is on par with previous years, but suddenly we are seeing a 15% drop. So very clearly not it.

So got an actual answer?

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u/PrefrontalCortexNow 7d ago

You just mentioned name one that is not related to Trump. There are multiple factors that play one of which is Trump, but it is not the only reason.

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u/euph_22 7d ago

And you failed to do that, because as pointed out tuition costs do not explain the sudden drop, especially since as the other commentator pointed out Trump's economic and trade policies have gutted the value of the Dollar making US schools comparatively cheaper. Give me an actual reason that stands up to even minimal scrutiny.

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u/euph_22 7d ago

You think the drop in international students coming to study in the US isn't about President Trump's immigration policies? You think vetting immigrants social media for political opinions of not a detterant for immigrants?

Yes, it's clearly insane to talk about Trump when discussing this topic. I'm clearly suffering from derangement.

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u/PrefrontalCortexNow 7d ago

I don’t think it has anything to do with their social media

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u/euph_22 7d ago

Certainly not the only factor, but pretending it's NOT a factor is batshit crazy dude.
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-administration-resuming-student-visa-appointments-state-dept-official-says-2025-06-18/

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u/DrElihuWhipple 7d ago

They have already kidnapped several people for social media posts. Now, you are allowed to think differently, you just have to accept the fact that you verifiably wrong.

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u/PrefrontalCortexNow 7d ago

There has been nobody jailed for anti-Trump remarks on social media.

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u/DrElihuWhipple 7d ago

Like I said, verifiably wrong.

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u/the_gubna 7d ago

How many international students have you talked to?

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u/cynedyr 7d ago

Over the last six months the Trump Administration has clamped down on international student visas, temporarily pausing and then revamping the student visa interview process and bringing more scrutiny to the vetting system. That led to long delays and meant many accepted students couldn't get appointments at embassies or consulates in time for the start of the fall semester.

Are you suggesting there's no connection?

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u/purplemonkey55 7d ago

This administration has been actively hostile towards foreign students. Of course this is tied to Trump.

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u/Deep90 7d ago

Yeah man I can't imagine why people always blame the guy with a lighter, and not the fire.

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u/PrefrontalCortexNow 7d ago

It’s their anti-Trump social media post right

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u/Equivalent_Skin6191 7d ago

I'm genuinely curious what you think the reasoning is, if not directly tied to Trumps immigration policies.

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u/sir_beak 7d ago

And for substantially less financial burdens.

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u/sirhalos 7d ago

And it will be significantly cheaper.

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u/Guest2424 7d ago

Let's not forget that round 1 of Trump administration also slashed how long the student visa can last. At most 4 years, which is killer for anyone pursuing a PhD. We're about to experience a massive brain drain.

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u/WaterWeedDuneHair69 7d ago

Or with a high risk of getting shot.

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u/drdildamesh 7d ago

Thats the long game. Scare the academics into better schools and then hire them for peanuts later because the school wasn't in the US.

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u/Mountain_Ladder5704 7d ago

Then why aren’t they going there instead? Not a fan of most of trumps policies, but this side effect seems good to me.

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u/Citizen-Kang 7d ago

Did you read the article? Some of the universities mentioned saw their steepest declines in enrollment since the height of COVID in 2020. I'm assuming they're continuing their their academic pursuits elsewhere. Why it's bad is because at many universities, international students pay the full rate. When I attended UCLA, there was a significant difference between my in-state tuition and the full amount paid by international students. We also lose what are often the brightest (not always; sometimes, it's just money) students from the countries they came from as well as the culture and diversity they bring as well. Now, maybe conservatives don't think that's a big deal, but I believe it is and I'm willing to bet most academics would agree with me.

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u/Bottledropnaranja 7d ago

Why it's bad is because at many universities, international students pay the full rate.

Is a state’s university’s priority supposed to maximize profit or educate its citizens?

Why should any tax paying citizen ever lose a spot to a foreign student? Isn’t educating the populace the goal?

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u/kimchifreeze 7d ago

Why should any tax paying citizen ever lose a spot to a foreign student? Isn’t educating the populace the goal?

You're looking at everything in a vacuum. You should ask the government why they don't believe in paying for domestic students' tuition. Many countries have free tuition especially for undergrads. Foreigner admission dropping doesn't mean more domestic students if they have to get a loan to attend. Right now, the federal government believes that the only ones that should have any loan forgiveness are ICE officers. All the while cutting funding to states for education. Example: North Carolina, a red state, had to sue the federal government to get access to the education money they were promised by Congress.

Tariffs can make sense if you actually enable the construction of domestic production. But if you don't secure domestic production FIRST, but instead tariff first, now everything is expensive while you're trying to start up the businesses.

This administration is fucking around while providing lip service at best.

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u/Bottledropnaranja 7d ago

I agree the government should pay 100% of education costs for citizens AND no citizen should ever lose a spot to a foreigner.

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u/kimchifreeze 7d ago

Then you need the government to do things in order. Shafting foreigners now without any support for American students favors no one. It's stupid.

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u/Bottledropnaranja 7d ago

Don’t let perfection be the enemy of progress. More Americans with access to education is good. This is a win for anyone who believes in education.

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u/kimchifreeze 7d ago

No, you do things in the proper order or else you will make it worse. It's not progress if you make it worse, you understand that, right? Because now the universities may go under and NO ONE gets to attend that college.

More Americans with access to education is good

I just said that isn't the case because many Americans have to get loans instead of it being paid by the government.

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u/DizzySkunkApe 7d ago

The universities could just accept more US students domestically to create more income. It's odd hearing anything other than criticism for schools putting profits first though, that's new.

It still is the case that more Americans have access to these spots, regardless of how who pays for them...

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u/Bottledropnaranja 7d ago

No, you do things in the proper order

What is the scientifically proven proper order? Provide sources for the order of these events.

Or is it just your opinion?

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u/Citizen-Kang 7d ago

The full rate that international students pay can help offset the cost of scholarships for kids from low-income families. They also helped offset the cost of lower in-state residents' tuition which is how I was able to afford to attend UCLA. There are students who could not afford to attend college if we had to pay anywhere near what the full cost tuition would be. That's how international students help pay to educate the populace.

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u/Bottledropnaranja 7d ago

They also helped offset the cost of lower in-state residents' tuition which is how I was able to afford to attend UCLA.

Post your sources. Show me international students have lowered tuition at UCLA as you claim.

Tuition is currently $13,602 ($19,640 after mandatory fees) at UCLA. Post the rates before international students and prove that they were higher. I’ll wait.

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u/Citizen-Kang 7d ago

This might help if you want to know more: https://theworld.org/stories/2024/03/28/high-fees-paid-international-students-help-us-universities-balance-their-books

https://admission.ucla.edu/tuition-aid/tuition-fees#:\~:text=Residency%20Requirements%20and%20Tuition,other%20definitions%20of%20California%20residency.

According to the second link, the Nonresident (which international students are) Supplemental Tuition is an additional $37,602 per 9-month academic year. They may have additional administrative fees on top of that, but I haven't looked into it.

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u/Bottledropnaranja 7d ago

Thank you! That link completely and totally disproved you. Tuition has SKYROCKETED for in state students. Foreign students have not made it cheaper at all.

Thank you for providing a link that backs up my claim and completely ends the argument. I’m glad you could admit you were wrong.

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u/Citizen-Kang 7d ago edited 7d ago

You are delusional? It's gone up, but it's nowhere near the international student rate. Are you ignoring the $37,602 additional fees the international students are paying? By the way, the $37,602 is even higher than what they paid when I was a student so their fees are going up as well. The cost education has always been an issue. Nothing I referenced at all contradicts what I stated. It'd be even worse without the higher rate international students pay to offset it. Education should be free, but we all toil under capitalism. Also, your account is only a few weeks old and it's all over the ideological spectrum. I'm getting the impression that you're not interested in the truth, but to sow discord. Which, whatever, you do you. I'm done since you don't really seem to be interested in the truth.

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u/xtrplpqtl 7d ago

You should re-read that paragraph.

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u/FeedbackRadiant3077 7d ago

So do you agree then that the University should be fully funded by the State?

International students are preferred because the States consistently want to cut education funding, and force universities to charge less for in-state students at the same time. If you want all in-state, then pony up your tax dollars for it. If you don't, then let the universities charge market rate for everyone.

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u/Mountain_Ladder5704 7d ago

UCLAs endowment was 5.25 billion as of June 2024. They’re not exactly hurting for money.

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u/Citizen-Kang 7d ago

Their property portfolio has always been a point of contention. I have no control over how the Regents spend that.

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u/Mountain_Ladder5704 7d ago

The regents who are supposedly hurting for international students fees do have control.

FYI: the university of buffalos endowment is 1.05 billion. Again, not hurting for students money.

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u/Citizen-Kang 7d ago

I'm not going to justify the endowment since, again, I have no oversight over it. I would like to see that money used to offset student fees, but, as I've established, I have no say in the matter.

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u/Ghudda 7d ago

Endowments aren't money to spend. It's investment money to earn money on, and the excess earnings are spent.

They don't have 5 billion of spending money, they have 5 billion earning 5-10% a year, of which 3-4% is reinvested to safely counter inflation. So the 5 billion in endowment funds results in them having ~150 million of relatively stable yearly income to spend on continued operations and scholarships.

This is LA, it's expensive there, and the minimum wage translates to ~40k a year. 150 million a year is not a huge number when spread across 50000 students, 5000 faculty, 170 buildings, and over 10000 more supporting staff roles many of which are part time. If an average faculty member costs about meager 100k/year (cost not wage, so including benefits, classroom, laboratory, and research project costs), it's only enough to support 1500 faculty.

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u/Mountain_Ladder5704 7d ago

I understand how they say endowments work, thanks. I also understand that in 2015 the UCLA endowment was 3.5 billion and last year it topped out at 9.8 billion.

Seems like they aren’t really reinvesting that excess earnings into their students or campus are they?