In a move that delivers sharp punishment to the elite institution, the Trump administration has barred Harvard University from enrolling international students.
In a letter to the university’s administration, Homeland Security Secretary, Kristi Noem said that the university’s Student Exchange Visitor Program certification has been revoked, citing the university’s refusal to turn over the conduct records of foreign students requested by the DHS last month.
The programme is overseen by the US Homeland Security Investigations unit, which falls under the agency Noem leads.
According to the letter, not only will Harvard not be able to accept foreign students on its campus, but current students will need to “transfer to another university in order to maintain their non-immigrant status.”
Noem said in a post on X that it is “a privilege, not a right,” for universities to enroll foreign students and “benefit from their higher tuition payments to help pad their multibillion-dollar endowments.”
She added that Harvard had “plenty of opportunity to do the right thing” but it refused.
The action marks an escalation amid a wider standoff between the university – which has refused to agree to a list of demands related to its diversity programmes and response to pro-Palestine protests – and the Trump administration.
Like many other colleges and universities, Harvard drew intense criticism last year for its handling of pro-Palestinian protests and encampments following the start of the Israel-Hamas war, as well as complaints from Jewish alumni and students about anti-Semitism on campus.
Harvard and Trump officials have been locked in conflict for months as the administration demands the university make changes to campus programming, policies, hiring and admissions to root out on-campus antisemitism and eliminate what it calls “racist ‘diversity, equity and inclusion’ practices.”
The administration has homed in on foreign students and staff it believes participated in contentious campus protests over the Israel-Hamas war.
However, the university’s leadership argues many of the requests, including an “audit” of the “viewpoint” of its students and staff, go far beyond the role of the federal government and may violate Harvard’s constitutional rights.
The administration has responded with three rounds of federal funding and grant cuts, totalling more than $2.6bn.
The most recent was on Monday. Harvard is currently pursuing a lawsuit accusing the administration of defying the US Constitution in its actions.
Harvard is among dozens of US universities facing similar demands from the Trump administration, but it has emerged as the fiercest defender of its academic independence.
The Trump administration appears poised to make an example of Harvard as it threatens similar punishment to other institutions if they don’t cooperate. “This should be a warning to every other university to get your act together,” Noem said.
Harvard Condemns SEVP Revocation
Harvard swiftly condemned the SEVP revocation as “unlawful.”
The university in a statement that it is “fully committed to maintaining Harvard’s ability to host international students and scholars, who hail from more than 140 countries and enrich the University – and this nation – immeasurably.”
University Spokesperson, Jason Newton said, “We are working quickly to provide guidance and support to members of our community.”
“This retaliatory action threatens serious harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines Harvard’s academic and research mission.”
Jason Newton
The decision could impact more than a quarter of Harvard’s heavily international student body, who have been flung into anxiety and confusion by the announcement.
Professors warn a mass exodus of foreign students threatens to stifle the academic prowess of the institution even as it battles against the administration for its ideological autonomy.
The university has an enormous foreign student population that could be impacted.
It says it has 9,970 people in its international academic population, and data shows 6,793 international students comprise 27.2% of its enrollment in the 2024-25 academic year.
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