As U.S. Enrolls Fewer International Students, Universities in Asia Are Going the Other Direction
by
Miranda Jeyaretnam
Reporter
May 12, 2026 7:45 AM ET
American universities are beginning to see international student enrollment drop, coinciding with President Donald Trump’s increasingly restrictive immigration policies, and institutions in Asia and Europe may stand to benefit.
Foreign student enrollment at U.S. universities for the 2026 spring semester fell by 20% from last spring, according to a new report by organizations including U.S.-based international education nonprofit NAFSA. The report, published on Monday, surveyed 149 U.S. schools. Around 62% of those institutions reported lower international student enrollment in both undergraduate and graduate programs compared to last year. At the graduate level, U.S. universities recorded an average fall of 24%.
Prospective students around the world may be responding to Trump’s aggressive anti-immigration agenda, which has directly targeted foreign-born students in the U.S. and created a less attractive higher education and job environment for non-Americans. The Trump Administration has also sought to reshape American higher education, including slashing or threatening to withhold funding from top universities.
Already, international student travel to the U.S. in August, including returning students, fell by 19% compared to the year before. The total number of international students enrolled across the whole country fell by 1.4% last fall, the first drop in three years. Some reports found that new international student enrollment in the fall fell by 17%.
https://time.com/article/2026/05/12/us-university-higher-education-international-students-asia-trump-immigration-visa/
