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    The image next to Wittgenstein is actually John Turturro saying ‘If pasta could talk, I’d understand it’.–On a lighter note:…

Another blow for American universities trying to recruit and enroll foreign students

Brian Leiter

From CHE:

The [new Trump Administratin] guidance, which is expected to be released any day, would make visas valid for four years or the anticipated length of a student’s degree — whichever is shorter. Students in longer programs like doctorates would have to apply for an extension to finish their studies.

It’s a shift from longstanding policy that allows, with few exceptions, visa holders to remain in the United States as long as they continue to be full-time students. Under the current system, known as “duration of status,” students can take as long as they need to graduate or even start another degree program — say, a master’s after earning a B.A. — without applying for a new visa.

Since a Ph.D. program in philosophy is almost never completed in just four years, this means that foreign students will have to “roll the dice” that their visa will be renewed after four years of work. Add to this, of course, that the Trump Administration has made clear that foreigners here on student visas do not have real constitutional rights, and this new rule will surely depress even further foreign enrollment.

I’d be curious to hear from foreign students how they now view all this? For those who are still thinking about graduate study, will you still consider the U.S., and if not, what countries are you looking at? For those who have already chosen to study at schools not in the U.S., where are you now?

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One response to “Another blow for American universities trying to recruit and enroll foreign students”

  1. International Student

    I’m an international student presently enrolled in an American Philosophy PhD program.

    This and similar changes have sent a clear message from the American federal government: At best, I am begrudgingly welcome here. If the intent of these policies is to encourage international students to leave, or not to come at all, they will likely achieve their purpose: I look forwards to leaving the United States once I have completed my program. Moreover, if the attacks on American universities and the policies that supported international students had begun before I enrolled in my PhD, I doubt I would have accepted an offer from an American institution and enrolled in a program outside of the United States.

    Having said this, there remain significant advantages to enrolling in an American PhD program. Few places outside of the United States offer (1) the same breadth of philosophical training achieved through coursework, (2) the same quality of close of “hands on” advising received in dissertation writing, (3) the same sorts of opportunities to gain teaching experience, and (4) decent funding, all in a single graduate program. Of course, there are exceptions to this both inside and outside of the United States.

    For international students, the calculus is therefore one of weighing the advantages of enrolling in an American PhD against its’ risks. Obviously there is no decision procedure here and one’s personal circumstances will and should have a significant influence on one’s decision. However, for those who gain admission to non-American programs that offer similar advantages to American programs, I have a hard time seeing why they would come to the States.

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