Dear Matt,
It is mid-September. How is this possible? September has been a doozy. I hope you’re hanging in. Here in Washington we are cursing the arrival of the invasive spotted lanternflies and watching to see if Congress will act to avoid a government shutdown, among other maladies.
Our full court press to defend Duration of Status (D/S) continues! As we shared last week, we collaborated with several higher education associations to prepare guidance for institutions on how to submit a comment letter and what to include before the September 29 deadline. Visit our portal page to find it, along with a detailed analysis of the proposed rule, a non-technical “explainer” document, and links to send a message to Congress urging their intervention.
NAFSA partnered with the American Immigration Lawyers Association and others in organizing a sign-on letter urging an extension of the D/S public comment period, given the complexity of the rule, broad impact, and significant economic implications. The September 18 letter drew more than 100 signatures, including institutions of higher education, media organizations, and businesses and trade associations.
New survey results reinforce our reason for concern about the loss of D/S. NAFSA and the Institute for Progress conducted two surveys of current and prospective international students to gauge the impact that policy changes would have on students' decisions to study or remain in the United States. The surveys were distributed with assistance from the American Physical Society, IDP Education, Studyportals, ApplyBoard, and others. Findings include that nearly half of the more than 1,000 current students and postdocs surveyed would not have enrolled in a U.S. institution in the first place if D/S had been replaced with a fixed period of admission.
These results are especially sobering when considering the report just released by Georgetown University, “Falling Behind: How Skills Shortages Threaten Future Jobs” which predicts a skills shortage of about 5.25 million in the United States between 2024 and 2032 and acknowledges the role of immigration restrictions in contributing to the problem.
Another new survey released by Pew Research Center shows that most Americans (79%) think it’s good for U.S. colleges and universities to accept international students. That includes majorities of both Republicans and Democrats. Yet the results also illustrate sizeable support for certain restrictions based on country of origin (China, India, Nigeria, South Korea, and Canada, to varying degrees) and if they are critical of U.S. foreign policy. Explore the findings to see how responses vary by party, age, and level of education.
The media, meanwhile, continue to convey the implications of deterring or restricting international student talent. Recent national stories include What Trump’s Foreign Student Crackdown Means for US Universities in Bloomberg and Trump’s Travel Bans Keeps International Students from Coming to the U.S. for College in the Associated Press, while regional outlets are telling the story of impact in key states: International student enrollment decline threatens Ohio’s economy, costing $200M and thousands of jobs in the Cincinnati Business Courier and International student enrollment down on Indiana campuses in Axios Indianapolis. Visit NAFSA’s web page, NAFSA in the News, for additional recent coverage.
Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS) also penned an opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal, How to Get the U.S. Workforce Back on Track which makes the case for common sense immigration reform that would attract and retain high skilled international talent in the United States while also investing in U.S. workers. Folks in Kansas are encouraged to send him a message thanking him for his leadership.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
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If you live in Kansas (or have ties there), thank Senator Moran for his recent Wall Street Journal opinion piece in support of international talent in the United States.
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Review and share with your colleagues the Duration of Status resources and submit a comment letter before the September 29 deadline!
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Urge your member of Congress to defend Duration of Status and share our call to action widely (nafsa.org/defendDS)
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Register for a NAFSA Regional Conference near you while Early-Bird Savings are still in effect! Don’t miss these high-touch opportunities to converge with your peers on strategies for solving critical issues affecting the field of international education.
Find some joy and rest this weekend!
Best,
Erica
Erica Stewart
Senior Director, Advocacy & Strategic Communications
NAFSA: Association of International Educators
