Photo: Sophie Park/The New York Times/Redux
The federal government moved to bar Harvard University from enrolling international students, a significant escalation of its ongoing conflict with the Ivy League institution over its refusal to comply with the Trump administration’s demands.
On Thursday, Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem announced that she has directed her agency to strip Harvard University of its Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification, which allows the university to enroll international students.
In a press release, Noem says the revocation stems from Harvard’s refusal of her April request to provide information regarding the “criminality and misconduct of foreign students on its campus” and claims the university has fostered a “toxic campus climate” with its handling of antisemitism. According to the secretary, Harvard is now prohibited from enrolling foreign students for the 2025–26 academic year, and international students who are currently enrolled will be required to transfer schools or risk losing their “nonimmigrant status.”
“This administration is holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus,” Noem said in a statement. “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. Harvard had plenty of opportunity to do the right thing. It refused. They have lost their Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification as a result of their failure to adhere to the law. Let this serve as a warning to all universities and academic institutions across the country.”
Harvard rebuked the federal government’s latest action in a statement. “The government’s action is unlawful. We are 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,” Harvard spokesperson Jason Newton said. “This retaliatory action threatens serious harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines Harvard’s academic and research mission.”
The Trump administration has prioritized the targeting of colleges and universities, threatening the higher-education institutions with the loss of federal funding and grants over lack of compliance with its draconian demands. In April, the federal government sent a letter to Harvard with a series of conditions for the university to adhere to or risk a further funding freeze, including reforms to its admissions and hiring practices; the elimination of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives; and the auditing of numerous departments.
Though the administration would later say the letter was sent in error, Harvard notably pushed back and said it wouldn’t comply with its demands. In response, the government moved to freeze $2.2 billion in federal grants to Harvard, prompting a lawsuit from the Ivy League institution. Trump himself has even floated the possibility of revoking Harvard’s tax-exempt status, a move that Harvard’s president Alan Garber has rejected as “highly illegal.”
