Harvard’s international students are in turmoil as some seek to transfer schools and others are afraid to attend graduation or even to be separated from their families in the U.S., according to a court filing from Maureen Martin, the university’s director of immigration services, on Wednesday.
Martin detailed a long list of consequences of the Trump administration’s directive that seeks to block Harvard’s ability to admit foreign students and told current ones they would have to transfer or leave the country.
Despite a judge putting a temporary pause on the measure, the students are apparently trying to figure out how they can get out of Dodge.
“Many international students and scholars are reporting significant emotional distress that is affecting their mental health and making it difficult to focus on their studies. Some are afraid to attend their own graduation ceremonies this week out of fear that some immigration-related action will be taken against them,” Martin wrote.
Some students have canceled plans to visit family as reports come in that those with Harvard visas are undergoing extra screening at airports on the way back to the U.S., including a former head of state who is currently a fellow at the university, and are afraid to be separated from family in the U.S.
Martin knows of at least 10 international students who had their visa applications denied following the government’s revocation notice.
“Too many international students to count have inquired about the possibility of transferring to another institution,” she said, while others have revoked or deferred their acceptance.
However, students who want to transfer could have a difficult time as many of the deadlines have passed for undergraduate transfers and those in graduate and Ph.D. programs are often specialized and not easy to switch.
But other countries, including adversarial ones such as China, are trying to recruit anyway, according to Martin, with the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology offering to streamline transfers from Harvard.
The judge in the case is holding an emergency hearing on Thursday to determine if an extended pause of the administration’s directive is warranted.
