Trump Orders Harvard To Shut Down

The Trump administration delivered a major blow to Harvard University on Thursday by revoking its ability to enroll international students, a dramatic move that intensifies President Trump’s ongoing conflict with the prestigious institution. The directive came from Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who announced that Harvard would no longer be part of the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), a certification required to host students from abroad.

As a result of this decision, Harvard is now barred from accepting any new international students. In addition, the Department of Homeland Security declared that the university’s existing foreign students numbering in the thousands must either transfer to another school or risk losing their legal immigration status. The policy impacts students from more than 140 countries, many of whom pay full tuition rates and contribute substantially to both Harvard’s revenue and the broader U.S. economy.

Secretary Noem defended the administration’s decision by accusing Harvard of fostering antisemitism, enabling campus unrest, and maintaining inappropriate ties with the Chinese Communist Party. In her statement, she emphasized that welcoming international students is “a privilege, not a right,” and criticized elite universities for relying on foreign tuition to inflate already massive endowments. According to Noem, Harvard was warned and given ample opportunity to comply with federal standards but chose not to act, leading to its removal from the program.

This move is expected to have far-reaching consequences for both Harvard and higher education institutions across the country. International students comprised 27 percent of Harvard’s total enrollment during the 2024–2025 academic year nearly 7,000 individuals. Their departure would represent a substantial academic and financial loss, not only for the university but for the surrounding community and economy.

Harvard responded swiftly, calling the administration’s action unlawful and pledging to fight it. A university spokesperson stated that Harvard remains committed to its global community of students and scholars, insisting that their presence “enriches the university and the country as a whole.” The school signaled that it would explore all legal avenues to overturn the DHS decision and restore its certification.

This escalating standoff underscores the broader tension between the Trump administration and elite academic institutions, with immigration policy now being used as a direct lever of political and cultural confrontation.