If Prime Minister Mark Carney were applying to universities today, his alma mater might not be an option.
What happened: A U.S. judge has blocked an order by the Trump administration for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to revoke the certification allowing Harvard University to enrol and retain international students. The White House can appeal the ruling.
- DHS Secretary Kristi Noem cited Harvard’s “pro-terrorist conduct” for the move, and ominously warned, “Let this serve as a warning to all universities […] across the country.”
Why it’s happening: This is the latest escalation in the fight between the White House and the hallowed university, which got on Team Trump’s bad side after rejecting demands to end DEI programs, restructure its governance, and reform international student screenings.
- The U.S. already moved to halt US$2.6 billion in federal grants meant for Harvard, and threatened it would freeze billions in future funding and revoke the school’s tax-exempt status.
Why it matters: If the White House gets its way, ~6,800 highly covetable students could be looking for a new school. And if it doesn’t, many foreign Harvard students still might feel unsafe and voluntarily leave. Even as Canada has tempered foreign enrolments, Canadian institutions could try to lure them.
Big picture: As the U.S. freezes funding to top institutions, slashes federal research funding, and generally creates an environment of fear for foreign students, it could lose its status as the global research leader as top talent flocks towards saner pastures.—QH