Disheartened by funding cuts, international students look beyond the US

For chemistry students across the globe, coming to the US to pursue graduate education is often the dream. Ample funding, access to cutting-edge research facilities, and the ease of transitioning into industry from academia have attracted international talent to the US for decades.

But for many, that dream has suddenly been upended. Research funding cuts by the second Donald J. Trump administration, fluctuating international relations, and rescinded offer letters from US universities are discouraging some prospective students from applying to graduate programs in the US. Instead, these students are looking for opportunities in places like Canada, China, and Europe.

Abhijit Majumdar, a professor in the chemical engineering department at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India’s premier research university, says that for years he has watched “brain drain” from India.

But following reductions in US federal research grants and the cancellation of previously awarded grants, Majumdar says, everything seems to be in flux. He is unsure how to advise students who are planning to apply to graduate programs in the US. “People in all stages of their research careers are anxious and watching closely. It is indeed a turbulent time,” he says.

Aditi Vichare, a 23-year-old researcher in Majumdar’s laboratory, says she was keen on applying to PhD programs in the US until a few months ago. Given its proximity to Boston’s biotech hub, Vichare was enthusiastically exploring programs at the city’s University of Massachusetts campus. But news of the funding cuts has deterred her from applying to US universities this year. “I find the entire situation unstable,” she says.

Vichare says that even when international students like herself are accepted by US programs, they have nagging worries about losing funding midway. “It is hard to commit to, say, 5 years of graduate school when you are unsure that you will be able to complete it,” she says. “What if there are more budget cuts announced in the future?”

The number of international students coming to the US has been rising for years, according to the Open Doors report published by the US Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the Institute of International Education. In 2024, nearly half a million international students enrolled in US graduate programs, an 8% increase from the previous academic year and an all-time high. The report says most of those students come from India and China, especially for science-related programs.

A report published by the US National Science Foundation notes high enrollment in master’s and PhD programs at US universities in recent years. From 2022 to 2023, the number of students attending these programs increased by 2.4% to 818,095 students. Much of this rise was driven by international students, the report says.

The ongoing budget retrenchment in the US academic ecosystem might dent that trend. Vichare’s concerns resonate with other international students as well. A chemistry master’s student in Italy, who insisted on anonymity to avoid jeopardizing his prospects, says he had planned to start a PhD this year and had been applying to programs in the US. But in light of the funding situation, he intends to find a job in industry in Europe instead.

“I may decide to apply to graduate schools next year, but for now, I feel like getting a job might be my best bet,” he says.

It is not just prospective students feeling adrift. Some students who had received offer letters from graduate programs say their admissions are being revoked. A Reddit user recently posted a copy of a letter from the chemistry department at Iowa State University rescinding their admission to the graduate program because of “current uncertainties with federal research funding.”

The international student, who insisted on remaining anonymous as they await decisions from other schools, says they were excited about the offer and were planning to pursue a PhD in materials chemistry at the university. “Some of the research programs at ISU were impressive,” the student says through Reddit’s chat.

Vijayender Singh, CEO and founder of YourPedia, an Indian firm that counsels nearly 50,000 science and mathematics students annually about higher education programs abroad, says the US is the top choice for his mentees. One reason is that English is the primary language in the US, and most Indian students are comfortable with it. Other captivating factors are the research-oriented environment in the US and the country’s respect for meritocracy and diversity, he adds.

Over the past month, Singh says, he has learned of at least 15 cases in which students’ offers were rescinded by US universities. “All letters had a common theme, where professors said they were unsure if they would have the funds to support international PhD students,” he says.

Students who come to the US to pursue PhDs and other advanced degrees have fewer funding options than do US citizens and residents, primarily because they are not eligible for several US National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants and fellowships. This pool of money is one of the main funding sources for advanced degrees, says a graduate student at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), who is in the US on a student visa and insisted on anonymity out of concern for repercussions.

Instead, international students heavily rely on stipends from teaching and research assistantships paid by universities. In some cases, international students can also be paid from the grants procured by the principal investigator of a lab. But the Trump administration’s decision to slash the amount the NIH pays for indirect research costs, often the source of stipends, could affect opportunities available to international students, says the UCSF graduate student.

At the same time, international students are concerned about the future availability of long-term work visas. The most popular visa program for graduates with advanced degrees who wish to continue working in the US is the H-1B, a category initiated in 1990. It allows US companies to hire highly skilled workers who are not US citizens.

Every year, 85,000 H-1B visas are issued by the US government through a lottery-based process. Last year, 479,953 people applied for one, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services.

The H-1B program became the center of controversy earlier this year when Laura Loomer, a far-right political activist and Trump supporter, posted on the social media platform X that the visa goes against the president’s “America First” agenda. Elon Musk, a Trump adviser who once worked in the US on an H-1B visa himself, came out in support of the program.

“While Trump has made no changes to the H-1B program, the conflicting political views on H-1Bs have significantly disturbed the international community of students who are banking on this visa,” the UCSF student says. He is advising other students to look for opportunities outside the US.

A handful of countries have prepared for an influx of students this year. A Politico story notes that European schools such as the Free University of Brussels and Aix-Marseille University are ramping up efforts to draw more international students. In addition, universities outside the US are trying to entice US researchers who have encountered funding difficulties or are fed up with the Trump administration’s approach to science.

Alexandre Brolo, head of the chemistry department at Canada’s University of Victoria, calls the situation in the US unfortunate. “It is important for every country to realize that building a research ecosystem is very difficult and breaking it is so easy. Once it is broken, it is very difficult to revive it,” he says.

But that unfortunate situation could be a boon to Brolo, who recently advertised positions in his lab on several social media platforms. He notes that Canadian funding mechanisms are stable compared with those in the US and that students across the globe should look at Canada as an alternative. Brolo says he hasn’t seen an immediate spike in applications from international students due to the US funding cuts. “But it’s too soon to say,” he adds.

Brolo immigrated to Canada from Brazil in 1996 to begin PhD studies at the University of Waterloo and went on to obtain a postdoctoral research position in Canada. For any research organization, having a diverse mix of students is essential, Brolo says, as it exposes people to different cultures and sometimes differing scientific perspectives. “Getting that cross-pollination where different schools of thought come together really helps science to move forward,” he says.

That diversity is now in jeopardy in the US. Singh, the YourPedia founder, says he is already seeing a rising number of Indian students apply to programs outside of the US. He notes in particular the growing interest in programs in China, which was not the case a few years ago. “It is remarkable how Chinese universities have developed top-notch research infrastructure,” Singh says.

Singh calls the changes in US higher education a pivotal moment in history. “While the US seems to be cutting down on research funding, China is ramping it,” he says. “In my opinion, the current state of funding in the US will just redirect the talent to other parts of the world.”