International students

Some international students at Harvard are worried about attending graduation, school tells court

From CNN's Katelyn Polantz

The Trump administration has thrown the lives of the university’s 7,000 international students into distress and disarray, with some afraid of attending commencement this week, Harvard’s director of immigration services spelled out yesterday in a new court filing.

Some US students are even reconsidering enrolling this fall because of the Trump administration’s actions, Maureen Martin wrote in her sworn statement.

Harvard’s faculty and administration are being “inundated with questions” from concerned students, and international students are so distressed their mental health has been affected, she wrote.

“Some are afraid to attend their own graduation ceremonies this week out of fear that some immigration-related action will be taken against them,” Martin wrote. “Some have cancelled upcoming international travel plans to conduct academic research or see their families in light of the risk that they might not be admitted back into the United States.”

Martin’s declaration in court highlights the competitive disadvantage the Trump administration’s recent actions against the university have caused. A judge has temporarily blocked the State Department and Department of Homeland Security from rescinding Harvard’s ability to host international students.

Yet some of the damage is already done, the school says.

International students set to come to Harvard for future semesters are reconsidering, including at least one medical school and one law student, Martin added, as are at least three US students who want to study where international students also can be. Others have had trouble getting student visas to the US at embassies abroad in recent days.