Chinese students wait outside the U.S. Embassy for their visa application interviews, in Beijing on May 2, 2012. Alexander F. Yuan/AP hide caption
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Alexander F. Yuan/AP
WASHINGTON — In yet another twist for foreign students hoping to study in the U.S., the State Department says it will resume processing student and visiting scholar visa applications for foreign citizens but plans to review their social media accounts as part of the process.
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All students applying for a visa will need to set their social media profiles to “public,” according to a post Wednesday on the State Department’s website, saying that the additional screening was part of the vetting process to exclude applicants who “pose a threat to U.S. national security.”
The State Department said failure to allow access to social profiles could be grounds for rejection, and that consular officers have been instructed to look for any indication of “hostility” toward the U.S. or its people, although it did not provide further details of what exactly that could mean.
The announcement comes after the department had previously suspended all student visa application interviews in May, at the time noting it was temporary to prepare for this new social media vetting procedure.
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This new policy is the latest in what has been an emotional roller-coaster for foreign students who have been waiting anxiously for visa interview appointments and more information, amid the Trump administration’s assault on universities, immigration and travel.
Earlier in May, the Trump administration revoked Harvard University’s ability to enroll international students, removing the college from the program that allows schools to sponsor foreign students for visas. That effort was quickly challenged in court and for now is blocked by a federal judge.
More than a million international students are currently enrolled in American colleges and universities, according to the State Department, contributing more than $40 billion to the country’s economy each year. But the Trump administration’s moves have already had a significant chilling effect. Early data from education application portals show the number of prospective students searching for U.S. universities has already declined sharply since January.
Smaller numbers of international students coming to the U.S. for an education can create major problems for the many schools that rely on these students for tuition as well as social, cultural and academic contributions.
