First there were the threats of crackdowns on immigration. Then there were the detentions of international students who had done nothing wrong. Then the deletion of many student visas and then … their reinstatements … for now. Amid those actions, a U.S. lawmaker has been pushing a bill to block Chinese students from coming to the U.S. Now, most recently, the U.S. State Department issued a brief statement on how it would “aggressively” crackdown on some students from China and Hong Kong. How are potential students and recent grads from China and Hong Kong feeling about all this? Sampan’s Hong Kong correspondent, Darren Liu, set to find out. All the names had been withheld at the request of the interviewees, who fear repercussions for giving their names.
Harvard Graduate Student, age 24, from Hong Kong, currently in the U.S.:
Having worked my entire life to be where I am today, such news causes fear for not just me, but my family. They have spent so much putting me through higher education, and if my visa were to get revoked, it would seem like such efforts were in vain. Although the Harvard administration has assured us international students not to worry, I have elected to stay in the U.S. this summer in fear of not being let back into the U.S.. I hope I will be able to return to Hong Kong for Christmas, but am not very hopeful with the current outlook. Moreover, the current situation has made me rethink my decision to even come to the U.S., as I initially debated between other offers from universities in Australia, where work visas are more readily available. I think Chinese students who may aspire to study in the U.S. should begin considering their choices more carefully, regardless of the Trump administration’s next actions.
High School Senior, age 18, Hong Kong:
I am currently unable to get a visa appointment, as the Hong Kong embassy’s portal has been paused. I was recently accepted to the University of California at Berkeley, and am very very disappointed about Trump’s recent policies toward the international community. Having celebrated with my family at my acceptance, it is quite disappointing to have to consider possibilities of studying in other countries or deferring my offer.
High School Junior, age 17, Hong Kong:
I am not too concerned about such statements, as I find that it is unlikely that blatant policies limiting all Chinese students will be enacted. Instead, I am rather concerned about the fear-mongering taking place and the indications of trends to a more polarized world. Many of those around me also believe such policies will not be enacted, but nevertheless, people have begun looking towards alternate countries to pursue higher education, due to the high perceived risk and instability of the U.S. This has caused many to be indirectly affected. For instance, I plan to apply to Canadian universities, yet due to current events, many others have also turned to Canadian universities as an alternative to the U.S., causing admissions to become more competitive, with some fearing that other foreign universities might end up overwhelmed.
High School Junior, age 17, Hong Kong:
I think the Trump administration’s policies regarding not just Chinese but all international students are rather shortsighted. Such policies hold many macro implications, allowing for other countries to gain a competitive advantage by hosting such bright students. As most of the international community already knows, international students are held to a rather high standard when competing for admission into America’s prestigious universities, therefore, by giving up such students, America will likely suffer in the long-term. Instead, I am rather curious as to the opinions of average Americans on the current policies.
High School Junior, age 17, Hong Kong:
I think such policies are extremely unfair, as many students have worked very hard to try to go to the U.S. to study, and are no longer given the opportunity to even apply due to possible visa restrictions. However, Trump’s statements have been quite vague, so we will have to wait and see. However, being a Hong Kong resident, I find that it is not very appropriate that we are targeted as well. We are a special administrative region, similar to Macau, but are alienated with China. Being a strong advocate against China’s increasingly direct rule over Hong Kong, this seems like an unjust punishment.
High School Senior, age 18, Shenzhen:
Being in an extremely competitive international region, Trump’s administration and comments only add stress to the already stressful process of applying to U.S. universities. Since going to the US has been a long-term goal of mine, I will continue to work towards it and hope the situation improves and I am able to ultimately matriculate to the US. Being that I have taken a gap year to reapply to the US, this comes at an extremely poor timing. I fear that my time and efforts will go to waste, especially since the US application process is quite different to other countries, for example, my SAT and APs scores will have gone to nothing.
