Reopening the United States to International Students.
The COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting United States policies related to travel and immigration restrictions continue to severely restrict the flow of international students to the U.S. While universities have rapidly adapted to ensure safe instruction for domestic students, many international students are unable to enter the country to begin or resume their studies. The consequences of these barriers – for both U.S. universities and the international students they serve – are significant and far-reaching. In addition to the immeasurable foreign policy and academic benefits that serve U.S. interests, international students make significant economic contributions to our campuses and communities.
For every eight international students the U.S. welcomes, three U.S. jobs are created or supported. According to NAFSA’s latest data, international students contributed $38.7 billion to the U.S. economy and supported nearly 416,000 jobs during the 2019-2020 academic year. If visa processing delays persist and travel restriction policies are not updated before May 2021, the consequences to the higher education sector will be dire and enduring. The timing of the enrollment cycle and the requirement for students to obtain a nonimmigrant F-1 visa make this issue particularly urgent.
The data tool below examines the consequence of U.S. COVID-19 travel ban policies that impact international students. Each dot represents a higher education institution whose names have been removed to maintain anonymity. Please click on the image below or here to access the data tool.
To learn more about the data tool or see where your specific institution stands, please contact us at info@presidentsalliance.org.
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