z• The US government’s temporary halt on new student visa interviews has alarmed the country’s universities and higher education associations.
• The president of the American Council on Education, Ted Mitchell, stated the pause would impede the ability of international students already admitted to institutions for the US summer and autumn 2025 semesters to enter the country promptly and pursue their studies.
• In the 2023/24 academic year, 2 814 South African students were enrolled at US universities.
Universities and higher education associations in the US have expressed concern over recent news reports that the government is temporarily “pausing” new student visa interviews to prepare for additional social media screening and vetting.
At least a dozen universities told News24 they were closely monitoring the situation and its direct impact on international students planning to study in the US.
More than 1.1 million international students, including 2 814 from South Africa, were enrolled at US higher education institutions in the 2023/24 academic year.
In a letter to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the president of the American Council on Education (ACE), Ted Mitchell, wrote:
This pause would greatly impede the ability of international students already admitted to our institutions for the summer and fall 2025 semesters to enter the country promptly and pursue their studies.
Mitchell’s letter on behalf of ACE and 35 other higher education associations in the US, dated 30 May and which was emailed to News24, stated, “Imposing a broad pause on all student visas would send a message that our nation no longer welcomes talented students and scholars from other countries.”
“Such a pause will also hinder our ability to compete for the world’s best and brightest minds to study in the United States.”
He wrote that while they did not want any student in the US who was a threat to national security, “this sudden action will discourage most international students with benign and honest intentions, especially those from China, from choosing to study in the US”.
Mitchell stated that an extended pause in scheduling interviews “would discourage international students from coming to the United States”.
“We urge the State Department to make any pause on student visa processing as short as possible and use all available tools to cut wait times and streamline the process for student visa applicants.”
Meanwhile, the University of California said in a statement to News24 that it was “very concerned” about the move to temporarily pause new student visa interviews.
The university said:
Our international students and scholars are vital to our university community and contribute significantly to our research, teaching, patient care and public service mission.
“It is critical that interviews resume as quickly as possible to ensure that applicants can go through the process and receive their visas on time so they can pursue their education.”
Iowa State University’s news service director, Angie Hunt, said the university continued monitoring policies that might affect international students.
“We are reaching out to individual students as appropriate and providing support through the international students and scholars office.”
Eight students from South Africa were enrolled at the university in the 2024/25 academic year.
Michele Ames, the spokesperson for the University of Colorado, said it was difficult to know what impact these changing policies would have on individual students who are currently enrolled and those who are hoping to begin their studies.
“Due to this uncertainty, we focus on supporting international students across our campuses as we navigate these unknown waters together.”
Twenty-two South African students were at the university in the US in autumn of 2024.
The deputy spokesperson for the University of Virginia, Bethanie Glover, said 10 South African students were enrolled, including two who would join in the new academic year in August.
“While we cannot speculate on specific impacts, we are closely monitoring developments related to the pause in scheduling new appointments for international student visas.”
University of Connecticut spokesperson Stephanie Reitz said the university, where one South African was enrolled as of October 2024, was studying the potential impact of the pause on new student visa interviews and other federal actions and “how they may affect our current and future enrolment”.
“We don’t yet have numbers for the 2025/26 academic year, which starts in August.”
The University of Minnesota added international students and scholars “have been and will always be an essential part of the university”.
“Our teams are working diligently to measure the short- and long-term impact of this and other changes in the federal landscape, especially for our students.”
Arizona State University, which has more than 17 000 international students, said it remained committed to fully supporting all international students in completing their degree programmes.
About 12 South African students were enrolled at the university during the spring semester that ended in May.
Northeastern University spokesperson Renata Nyul said: “As with many of the directives from the current administration, this situation is very fluid and can change without warning.
“We continue to monitor everything happening in Washington and constantly assess any potential impacts.
“We have a robust set of resources for our incoming and current international students, as well as contingency plans for those who might experience disruptions to their learning.”
The University of Notre Dame said in a statement that its international scholars, students, and families were vital members of its campus community and that “we will continue working to ensure that they are welcomed and supported at Notre Dame”.
Professor Vimolan Mudaly from the University of KwaZulu-Natal added that the temporary pause in new student visa interviews must be “devastating” for those students who have been accepted into US universities.
Mudaly said:
The entire process is offensive and impedes the academic development of young minds. Pausing these interviews creates uncertainty and anxiety for these students and their families.
He said an important lesson to be learnt was “to steer clear of US universities for now as the chaos and turmoil may only get worse”.
“There is every likelihood that our students may miss the opportunity this year [to study in the US] because of the policies being enacted in the US related to foreign students.”
The US Mission in South Africa said the Trump administration “is focused on protecting our nation and citizens by upholding the highest standards of national security and public safety through our visa process”.
“Every visa adjudication is a national security decision. Every prospective traveller to the United States undergoes inter-agency security vetting.
“Prohibiting entry to the United States by those who might threaten US national security or public safety is key to protecting US citizens at home.”
According to the statement, the US Department of State’s scheduling of non-immigrant visa interview appointments was dynamic.
“An embassy or consulate’s capacity reflects the time required for consular officers to adjudicate the cases before them in full compliance with US law, including to ensure applicants do not pose a security or safety risk to the United States.”
Since 2019, the department required visa applicants to provide social media identifiers on immigrant and non-immigrant visa application forms.
“We use all available information in our visa screening and vetting. All visa applicants, no matter the visa type and where they are located, are continuously vetted.”
The statement said that visa applicants might continue to submit their applications, adding: “Consular sections constantly adjust their schedules to allow for sufficient time to fully vet cases before them.
