Shaky ground
By Megan Zahneis December 3, 2025
When this fall’s new doctoral and master’s students were filling out their applications, there was little cause for concern about the near-term future of graduate education.
That’s changed.
President Trump’s return to the White House in January brought a cascade of new policy changes, including widespread termination of the grants that fund many doctoral students’ work and proposed caps on how much their institutions could be reimbursed for research. Visa-policy changes and an uncertain political climate made international students leery about continuing their education in the United States.
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Shaky ground
By Megan Zahneis December 3, 2025
When this fall’s new doctoral and master’s students were filling out their applications, there was little cause for concern about the near-term future of graduate education.
That’s changed.
President Trump’s return to the White House in January brought a cascade of new policy changes, including widespread termination of the grants that fund many doctoral students’ work and proposed caps on how much their institutions could be reimbursed for research. Visa-policy changes and an uncertain political climate made international students leery about continuing their education in the United States.
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A version of this article appeared in the December 12, 2025, issue.
Read other items in The Enrollment Issue.
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