International students are vital to the STEM talent pipeline and the U.S. economy. America’s leading research universities are magnets for global talent in STEM fields, which drive economic growth through research and development (R&D). This results in new companies and industries and creates millions of high-wage jobs.
Some key facts:
- International students added $43 billion to the American economy - just last year.
- Immigrants founded more than half of unicorn startups. This means privately held companies valued at $1 billion or more, like SpaceX, CrowdStrike, Zoom, and Instacart.
- Defense-related industries rely heavily on STEM workers. Half of these workers are foreign-born.
Recently, the administration has proposed policies which put American science at risk. AAU urges Congress to help the United States win the race for global scientific talent. For that reason, AAU opposes policies that:
- End duration of status for student visa holders.
- Delay, deny, or revoke student visas without due process.
- Impose broad travel bans and processing pauses that limit students, researchers, educators, and skilled professionals.
- Restrict the Optional Practical Training program for student visa holders.
- Make harmful changes to the H-1B visa program.
Such policies would harm U.S. leadership in science and cause our nation to lose the global race for scientific talent. Instead of attracting scientists, it could, and is, causing brain drain: when scientists eave America. We stand ready to work with Congress to keep America dominant in science and technology.
The Association of American Universities (AAU) urges Congress to reject policies that make it harder for the United States to attract and retain the best and brightest students and scholars from around the world and other high-skilled foreign talent.
The Trump administration’s deep cuts to federal funding of scientific research, crackdown on universities, and proposals aimed at deterring international talent have unleashed a loss of scientific talent – a brain drain - away from the United States to other countries.
This page will be updated regularly to provide new information as it becomes available regarding the AAU-Chamber of Commerce legal action contesting the implementation of a $100,000 fee for H1-B visa petitions.
DHS and ICE have proposed a rule that would make it harder for international students to complete their degree programs in the United States, obtain practical work experience upon graduation, or move on to another degree level.
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AAU joined more than 80 top businesses and organizations in calling on Congress to take legislative action and protect recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. In a letter to congressional leaders, the Coalition for the American Dream noted that businesses, already suffering from workforce challenges, would “face another crisis if Congress fails to act on an issue that has strong bipartisan support from the American people.”
AAU submitted written testimony for the record for the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, and Border Safety hearing on “Strengthening our Workforce and Economy through Higher Education and Immigration.”
AAU joined ACE and 20 higher education associations in a letter to Congress outlining priorities for provisions related to STEM education and scientific research and innovation in the America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology, and Economic Strength (COMPETES) Act of 2022 (H.R. 4521) and the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (S. 1260)
Letters | Science & Security | Immigration | Higher Education Regulation | Higher Education Legislation | National Science Foundation | Innovation and Competitiveness | Department of Energy | Department of Education
Comments from Compete America responding to proposed visa fee increases by the Department of State.
AAU joined ACE and 23 other higher education associations in submitting a comment letter in response to the Department of State’s proposal to increase visa application processing fees for several nonimmigrant visas, including F-1 student visas and J-1 exchange visitor visas.
