The Trump administration’s war on higher education is targeting the entire American research university model of excellence, which is based on open recruitment and democratic access to higher education.

One key part of Trump’s attack aims to decrease the number of international students in the United States.

The recent coerced agreement that the Trump administration extorted from Columbia University administrators makes this aim abundantly clear.

“The Trump administration is using rules, policies and formal agreements to compel and discourage U.S. universities from enrolling international students. A controversial immigration clause in the administration’s agreement with Columbia University represents the latest move to decrease international student enrollment. Settlements with other schools could soon follow. Despite what economists and educators view as the benefits of international students, Trump officials, led by White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, appear determined to reduce the number of international students who enter and remain in the United States to work,” Forbes reports.

“On July 23, 2025, Trump officials and Columbia University signed an agreement after the administration withheld over $400 million in federal research funds. The Trump administration accused the school of not sufficiently combating antisemitism on campus. Under the agreement, Columbia will pay $200 million to the U.S. Treasury and an additional $21 million into a fund associated with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to settle claims. A Resolution Monitor will ‘monitor Columbia’s compliance’ with those and other provisions. Columbia’s leadership decided that future and current funding, more than $1 billion, would remain at risk without a settlement,” according to Forbes.

“The agreement includes a controversial provision that commits Columbia University to decreasing international student enrollment. The measure has received little attention. On page nine, the agreement states, ‘Columbia will examine its business model and take steps to decrease financial dependence on international student enrollment.'”

“The measure is extraordinary, given that international students typically pay higher tuition than domestic students. Admitting more international students would likely improve the school’s finances.”

The Trump administration’s policies are seriously damaging research universities in the United States and threatening their ability to provide world-class higher education to international and American students alike.

Ever since the Second World War, American research universities have been the leading higher education institutions in the world, in large part because of their openness and their international recruitment of students, researchers, and professors from around the globe.

The political leaders of other nations have often worried about a “brain drain” of the “best and brightest” researchers from their societies to the United States. Now, the United States is beginning to experience a reverse “brain drain” of international students staying home and international researchers in the United States returning to their home countries.

Anderson, Stuart. “Trump And Miller Compel Colleges Not To Enroll International Students.” Forbes (4 August 2025).