International interest in graduate programs at American universities has decreased by 61% in just 9 months since January of this year. The data is based on the user behavior of Studyportals, a portal that tracks the preferences of 50+ million potential students.
This decline coincides with the beginning of Donald Trump's second term as president and the ensuing uncertainty over visa status and graduate labor rights. Experts of the portal note that the decisive factors in the choice of students are stability within the country and employment prospects after graduation.
The strongest drop in demand is observed among Iranian, Nepalese and Indian applicants, whose interest has decreased by 60%+ compared to last year. On the other hand, Vietnam and Bangladesh showed an increase in requests thanks to the new Jardine-Fulbright scholarship project, aimed at preparing the leaders of the future.
A study by the NAFSA association showed that changing the procedure for issuing visas significantly reduces the likelihood of international students enrolling in American graduate programs from 67% to 48%. Nearly half of current students planning to stay in the U.S. after graduation will also abandon those plans if conditions in the country worsen.
