Authorities at various US universities have emailed international students advising them to return to their respective campuses ahead of Donald Trump's inauguration.
Trump will be sworn in as the new president of the United States in January next year. During the campaign, he promised mass deportations of immigrants if he returned to the White House. He also announced to take the help of the country's military for this.
After winning the election on November 5, Trump began to take steps to fulfill his promise. "Concern" has been created among international students studying at various universities in the United States, said Professor Chloe East of the University of Colorado Denver.
"All international students are worried right now," said Professor Chloe East.
According to the US Higher ED immigration portal, more than 400,000 undocumented students are pursuing higher education in the United States.
Trump administration officials have said major infrastructure could be built to house undocumented immigrants on the deportation list.
Tom Homan, a veteran immigration official, has been appointed to oversee the border in Trump's incoming administration. He said that heinous criminals and those who pose a threat to national security will be deported on priority. However, this statement of his cannot reduce the anxiety of undocumented students who come for higher education.
Professor East said, "With the uncertainty surrounding immigration, students are under an incredible amount of anxiety and worry at the moment." Many students are worried about the validity of their visa and whether they will be allowed to continue their studies here.
Earlier this month, the University of Massachusetts issued a travel warning to its international students, faculty and university staff. They have been advised to return to campus before Trump is sworn in on January 20. American universities are now on winter break.
University officials said the Office of Global Affairs is issuing the travel advisory as a precautionary measure, following the Trump administration's 2016 travel ban.
Trump signed an executive order in his first week after taking the oath of office in 2017. The order banned travel to the United States from citizens of North Korea and Venezuela, along with several Muslim-majority countries. In his first term, he also proposed limiting student visas.
This time, the university authorities have already taken precautionary measures. Authorities at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Wesleyan University have also issued similar travel warnings and asked students and staff to return to the US before the swearing-in.
Foreign students are not the only ones concerned about Trump's immigration policy. Rather, students who were born in other countries but moved to the United States as children are also worried.
Until recently, they were protected under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy of the former President Barack Obama administration.
Trump attempted to repeal the policy during his first term. Obama's DACA policy protects more than 500,000 immigrants who immigrated to the United States as children.
Professor East said that the students of various Asian countries, especially China, are "concerned" about how China's relationship with the United States will be during the Trump era.
Maeda said Trump said he would only deport illegal immigrants. But he has gone back and toughened his word before.
Maeda said, "I think that international students will have problems with visas and it will make it easier to deport us."












