SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- The Trump Administration is putting a pause on interviews that would allow international students to get visas.
The move is expected to impact universities around the country, disrupting some students’ enrollment as soon as the coming summer or fall terms.
The decision could make it difficult for students to enroll in colleges across San Diego County.
RELATED: Trump administration pauses new student visa appointments worldwide
ABC 10News has previously reported that about 1/5 of UC San Diego’s student population are international students, and many are concerned about the administration’s changes around who can come to the U.S. for college.
The federal government also made it easier to deport more international students moving forward.
This is all happening in the middle of legal battles between President Trump and Harvard University.
Last week, Trump tried to stop Harvard from enrolling foreign students by removing the university from a program that allows colleges to sponsor student visas.
For now, that move has been blocked by a federal judge, and Harvard is also suing the Trump administration for trying to freeze billions of dollars in federal funding.
ABC 10News talked to some UCSD students who think it’s dangerous to stop international students from coming to the U.S. since they make up a large part of many schools’ communities.
“Every college in America needs these students to survive,” said Daniel Soria, a student at UCSD. “And to just straight out deny their chance to an educational opportunity, an opportunity to life, we think that’s ridiculous.”
Just a few weeks ago, the administration revoked thousands of student visas. That includes at least 35 UCSD students, and one student was deported.
UCSD could take a financial hit, due to a drop in international student enrollment.
International undergraduates pay an additional $34,000 in tuition, on top of the $19,000 base tuition.
That works out to more than $216 million in tuition the university could lose.
A message from the State Department says the Trump administration is considering ramping up screening for international students’ social media. But it’s unclear what those changes could look like
