The attempt to at Harvard University is reminiscent of Canberra¡¯s treatment of overseas students, with both groups at the mercy of erratic policy and the ¡°broad discretionary power¡± of immigration officials, according to an Australian ensnared in the ongoing battle.

President Trump¡¯s war against North America¡¯s oldest higher education institution has put the studies of the student, who asked not to be named for fear of jeopardising his visa, at risk, having planned to take up a place at Harvard in August.

¡°There¡¯s just so much uncertainty,¡± the man said, adding that ¡°it really makes me empathise and appreciate the situation with which international students in Australia are being treated¡±.

He said the uncertainty was particularly acute for Australians who had not yet obtained visas, following the 27 May suspension of pending the State Department¡¯s roll-out of ¡°expanded social media vetting¡±.

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¡°They¡¯re pausing all interviews, which were already very difficult to get,¡± the student said. ¡°It¡¯s really going to mess people around.¡±

Social media vetting was also a ¡°real worry¡±, he said. ¡°It seems like they¡¯re currently going after anyone who is pro-Palestine. There¡¯s no clear guideline for what is okay and what is not okay.

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¡°It feels like potential infringement on First Amendment speech, and it gives a high level of broad discretionary power to visa processing and border officials who may have personal views. They have a wide mandate to use the law as they see fit, which is never a good thing.¡±

He said international students applying for Australian visas must have felt similarly nervous, especially during last year¡¯s spike in visa rejections when many applications were refused for baffling reasons.

The timing of the Harvard ban, which was imposed on 22 May amid escalating sanctions against the university, had proven particularly difficult for foreign students. ¡°A lot of Australians had just finished exams and were in Europe, for example, on holiday. As soon as that law came in, the legal advice was, we don¡¯t think you can re-enter the country because the ban affects current students.¡±

While the Harvard ban is currently on hold after a district court judge imposed a ?- which was extended on 29 May - Trump has threatened further measures against international students.

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On 28 May, he told journalists that the proportion of foreigners at Harvard should be halved from 30 per cent to 15 per cent, much as Australian prime minister Scott Morrison had suggested that international students ¡°go home¡± at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Australian student said that if Harvard¡¯s injunction against the ban were overturned, foreigners enrolled there could find themselves in a similar situation to students who had gone home for Chinese New Year celebrations and could not return to their Australian universities following the Covid-19 border closures.

Current Harvard students could find themselves ¡°stranded¡±, separated from their belongings and paying rent on Boston premises they could neither afford nor access. Such worries exacerbated what was already a ¡°difficult¡± task. ¡°Moving to this country from Australia is not easy. Rent is notoriously expensive. The cheapest apartment would be nearly $3,000 (?2,228) a month, if you can find one.¡±

Australian students also had to pay well over US$1,000 in visa expenses, mainly because of a $815 ¡°¡± imposed because of Australia¡¯s high student visa fees. University students from many other countries, including Canada, China, France, Germany, India, New Zealand and the UK, are not charged reciprocity fees.

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¡°It¡¯s the uncertainty that makes things really hard,¡± the student said. ¡°People don¡¯t know what to do. If Harvard is unable to go ahead and enrol me, it¡¯s too late to do anything else this year. I applied only to Harvard because it¡¯s where I want to go.

¡°Most people are not going to have an easy option like deferring. People often rely on external funding, and the funding source may not exist next year. The opportunity is probably gone.¡±

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He said nobody was immune from such problems. Even the crown princess of Belgium, who is halfway through a Harvard master¡¯s degree,??faces potential expulsion.

john.ross@timeshighereducation.com