10043. For most Americans, that number means nothing. However, ask any Chinese student you encounter on campus, and they’ll tell you how these five digits symbolize the fragility of their futures in the United States. 10043 is the serial number for a presidential proclamation signed by President-elect Donald Trump in 2020, a proclamation which revoked study visas for thousands of international Chinese students overnight, forcing them to abandon their course of study halfway through. Years of their hard work vanished in an instant, and there was simply nothing they could do.

Proclamation 10043 was far from the first time the Trump administration had used the powers of the Executive Branch to curtail international students’ ability to study and work in the United States. Executive Order 13788 went into effect on April 18, 2017, which burdened the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services with additional procedures to artificially suppress the number of work visas granted to international students graduating from some form of higher education. Executive Order 13769, the infamous “Muslim ban,” unfairly restricted the ability of students from predominantly Muslim countries to receive an education in the United States. As a consequence of these political decisions, many international students feel despondent about their future outlooks. 

The H-1B work visa, one of the primary channels for international students to stay and work in the United States after graduation, saw its rejection rate skyrocket for candidates applying during the Trump presidency. Whereas fiscal years 2012 to 2015 had an average denial rate of 6.5%, fiscal years 2016 to 2019 witnessed a staggering average denial rate of 17%, meaning nearly one in five candidates for the H-1B was expelled from the country under Trump. Queue times for a green card have increased dramatically as well, especially for applicants from nations with large populations. The wait time for Indians queuing for an EB-2 category green card reached a comical high of 151 years in 2018, making opportunities in the United States unreachable.

As Trump prepares for his second term, it is expected that his administration will  double down on hard-line anti-immigration policies targeted at international students — particularly those who are seeking to engage in research or work. Those whose sole purpose is to receive an education are not safe either, as evidenced by the fact that Trump nearly moved forward with a proposal from immigration hawk Stephen Miller to ban all Chinese students from studying in the United States in 2018, before being talked out of it by Terry Bransted, the ambassador to China at the time. 

Firm Trump supporter Senator Tom Cotton — well known for seemingly not understanding the difference between Singapore and China during hearings with the TikTok CEO — tried to introduce a similar bill barring all Chinese graduates from learning STEM subjects in 2020. Thankfully, his proposal never made it out of Congress. For the next four years, a number of channels international students have traditionally relied on for a future in America could be at risk. The STEM OPT Extension, an invaluable instrument that allows students in the sciences to participate in the H-1B lottery twice, will likely come under siege. Trump’s cabinet may also try to raise the requirements for both the National Interest Waiver and Employment-Based Visas, which have been critical in helping many exemplary international students gain green card status to continue their contributions to the United States.

Trump’s anti-immigration stance is part of a larger shift towards isolationism across the world. Many provinces in Canada recently reformed their Provincial Nominee Programs to make it harder for international graduates from Canadian universities to stay there. Australia implemented a hard cap on the number of international student visas that it will approve annually. The failed bill introduced by Cotton found a surprising audience in Switzerland, as top Swiss institution ETH Zurich introduced a new security screening policy that blocked students from certain countries including China, Russia and Cambodia from applying to master’s programs in STEM subjects. Students in fields free from political influence such as pure mathematics and biology have found themselves the victims of collateral damage as tensions heighten across the globe. While preventing malicious activity has always been cited as the rationale for these bans, international students are almost always sorted by pedigree — not intention.

The cards are stacked against international students right now, which begs the question — where to? What can we as students do to face the increasing adversity and hostility arising from global conservative politics? The harsh truth is that it will be a turbulent four years, and we must brace ourselves for the potential hardships that lay forth. New F-1 and J-1 study visas granted are likely to have shorter lifespans, and it may be recommendable that students without citizenship studying certain scientific fields reduce the number of visits home to mitigate the risk of being denied a visa renewal. Doctoral students especially might want to consider making a trip to see loved ones outside the United States before January, as it may be the last chance to do so for the next couple of years. Soon-to-be graduates should communicate with their employers to discuss possible options to transfer to a more stable visa status, perhaps an L-1 or an O-1. If unable to acquire those or an H-1B, consider pursuing a graduate degree, as it’ll grant you a new F-1 visa with opportunities to work using CPT.

With all that said, I don’t want international students to lose hope. The future may look bleak now, but we still have a lot of factors working in our favor. Many American universities heavily rely on international tuition for their income, so they have a vested interest to protect the legal status of international students using their contacts in government. In just two more years, there will also be another midterm election, where there’s a high probability that progressives who are more sympathetic towards international students will take control of both the Senate and the House, limiting the damage that Trump could do to the immigration and education infrastructure. Potential diplomatic backlash from foreign governments will also act as a safeguard against any radical change in visa policy that could interrupt the studies of international students. Last of all, remember that you are strong. You’ve accomplished so much already to be where you are today, so believe in yourself that you have what it takes to find a way towards success, whatever the circumstances may be. Know that the sun shines the brightest after the tempest has passed; know that there will always be a better tomorrow. 

WSN’s Opinion section strives to publish ideas worth discussing. The views presented in the Opinion section are solely the views of the writer.

Contact Kevin Hu at [email protected].