Trump Immigration International Students
Trump’s New Immigration Target: OPT for International Students
UPDATE: MAY 18, 2020
Despite the difficult times for U.S. universities and America’s struggle in attracting international students, the Trump Administration is considering imposing new restrictions on students who want to work in the United States after graduation on Optional Practical Training (OPT).
On April 22, 2020, the Trump administration issued a presidential proclamation suspending the entry of most new immigrants for at least 60 days and ordered a 30-day review to recommend new restrictions on temporary visa holders.
Trump Immigration International Students
In a recent radio interview, acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf said that President Donald Trump’s immigration executive order was a first step, teasing additional measures aimed at non-immigrant temporary visas. He later indicated that Optional Practical Training was an administration target.
Upon being asked if Chinese students should be banned from studying in technical fields in America because they go back to China with that knowledge, Wolf answered that it was a concern that the Department of Homeland Security highlighted.
“From a Department of Homeland Security perspective, we’re certainly very concerned about the number of visa programs that Chinese students can use to come into the country and study and stay, and eventually work,” said Wolf. “We see some of these programs have been potentially abused in the past. This is work that’s been well underway at the Department.
The Department has also been on this issue for a period of time as well. Again, we’ll have a series of recommendations that we’ll be teeing up and some of those could include students on what we call . . . OPT and CPT, Optional Practical Training, and a lot of those are utilized by Chinese students who could potentially stay here and work. Department’s highlighted as well.”
What is an OPT?
Optional Practical Training (OPT) is temporary employment that is directly related to an F-1 student’s major area of study. Eligible students can apply to receive up to 12 months of OPT employment authorization before completing their academic studies (pre-completion) and/or after completing their academic studies (post-completion).
In “Barriers to recruiting and retaining global talent in the U.S.“, a joint report from the FWD.us and Orrin G. Hatch Foundation, we learn that more than 1 million students from around the globe earn their higher education at colleges and universities in the United States each year.
“The OPT program allows graduates to gain valuable hands-on experience and begin contributing their education and training to the U.S. immediately. Without OPT, most international graduates would have no choice but to leave the U.S. and contribute their skills to our global competitors.” reads the report.
Protecting the option of OPT for international graduates is indeed critical to attracting, educating and retaining promising talent from around the world.
For most of the Trump presidency, restricting or eliminating Optional Practical Training, including in STEM fields, has been on the regulatory agenda. The main argument has always been about protecting jobs for Americans.
This argument is not prevailing however. A study by Madeline Zavodny, an economics professor at the University of North Florida who examined nearly a decade of data on OPT, found the following:
– “There is no evidence that foreign students participating in the OPT program reduce job opportunities for U.S. workers. Instead, the evidence suggests that U.S. employers are more likely to turn to foreign student workers when U.S. workers are scarcer.
– “The relative number of foreign students approved for OPT is negatively related to various measures of the unemployment rate among U.S. STEM workers. A larger number of foreign students approved for OPT, relative to the number of U.S. workers, is associated with a lower unemployment rate among those U.S. workers.
– “Analysis of the data shows unemployment rates are lower in areas with larger numbers of foreign students doing OPT as a share of workers in STEM occupations. Comparisons at the state level likewise show a negative relationship.”
$37 billion
contributed annually by international students
455,000 jobs
direct and indirect jobs created/supported as a result of the economic benefit of international students
Countries from around the world have always been competing for the most valuable of all resources: human capital. Take Canada for example, where it is easier for students to work after graduation. They contribute some $22 billion to the economy each year which supports around 200,000 Canadian jobs.
The Trump Administration will likely see some opposition in curtailing or eliminating the OPT. In a time of economic crisis, getting international students to come America would be a big argument, while the argument on getting restricting such students is weak.
The OPT is an important but imperfect bridge, allowing graduates an opportunity to develop their skills and build relationships with potential employers while determining their future immigration options.
This option must be protected because it is in the best interest of both the international students and of the United States, which will likely be willing to remain ‘America First’ in term of attractiveness.
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Trump Immigration International Students
