Trump administration’s proposed deal with select US colleges includes a cap on international undergraduate enrolment

Update for 21 October 2025: The administration's 20 October deadline for responding to the proposed compact has now passed. Here are the significant developments:

• Of the 12 colleges who initially received the proposed compact from the White House, seven have rejected it outright. They include: Brown University, Dartmouth College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Arizona, University of Pennsylvania, University of Southern California, and University of Virginia. Three others – Arizona State University, Vanderbilt University, and Washington University in St. Louis – have said they are "providing feedback."

• In a 12 October social media post, President Trump appeared to issue an open invitation to all US institutions to participate in the compact.

Since this item was first published, several institutions have spoken out to publicly reject the deal, including the following.

On 10 October, MIT President Sally Kornbluth replied in an open letter to Education Secretary Linda McMahon. President Kornbluth outlined some of MIT's core values, and added:

"We freely choose these values because they’re right, and we live by them because they support our mission – work of immense value to the prosperity, competitiveness, health and security of the United States. And of course, MIT abides by the law.

The document also includes principles with which we disagree, including those that would restrict freedom of expression and our independence as an institution. And fundamentally, the premise of the document is inconsistent with our core belief that scientific funding should be based on scientific merit alone.

In our view, America’s leadership in science and innovation depends on independent thinking and open competition for excellence. In that free marketplace of ideas, the people of MIT gladly compete with the very best, without preferences. Therefore, with respect, we cannot support the proposed approach."

On 15 October, Brown University President Christina Paxson replied in a letter of her own to similarly decline the invitation to join the compact. The letter reads in part:

“I am concerned that the Compact by its nature and by various provisions would restrict academic freedom and undermine the autonomy of Brown’s governance, critically compromising our ability to fulfill our mission. Additionally, a fundamental part of academic excellence is awarding research funding on the merits of the research being proposed. The cover letter describing the Compact contemplates funding research on criteria other than the soundness and likely impact of research, which would ultimately damage the health and prosperity of Americans.”

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The White House has sent a draft of "Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education" to nine US colleges on 1 October. It outlines conditions that the colleges are invited to comply with to receive preferential treatment from the US government.

The introduction to the Compact sets out the premise clearly: "American higher education is the envy of the world and represents a key strategic benefit for our Nation. In turn, the US university system benefits in a variety of ways from its extraordinary relationship with the US government. These include (i) access to student loans, grant programs, and federal contracts; (ii) funding for research directly or indirectly; (iii) approval of student and other visas in connection with university matriculation and instruction; and (iv) preferential treatment under the tax code. To advance the national interest arising out of this unique relationship, this Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education represents the priorities of the US government in its engagements with universities that benefit from the relationship. Institutions of higher education are free to develop models and values other than those below, if the institution elects to forego federal benefits."

The short version of that, as the Associated Press puts it, is that the colleges are being asked to "adopt the White House’s vision for America’s campuses, with commitments to accept the government’s priorities on admissions, women’s sports, free speech, student discipline and college affordability" in return for increased federal funding.

The nine initial colleges to receive the Compact have been asked to provide feedback and to indicate their decision, presumably to sign the Compact or not, by 21 November, 2025.

This has led to widespread criticism of the proposed agreement by college leaders and commentators alike, including Erwin Chemerinsky, the dean of the law school at the University of California, Berkeley. Writing in the New York Times, Mr Chemerinsky said, "This is extortion, plain and simple."

American Council on Education President Ted Mitchell said that the Compact "violates campus independence and undermines free speech." “Any effort to reward or punish institutions based on their adherence to the views of government officials should trouble all Americans," he added.

The 15%

The Compact's proposals around international enrolment are not merely concerned with limiting student numbers. They also provide guidance on the attitudes and views of students that should be granted admission, and they also establish an institutional responsibility to share student records with government officials.

More specifically, the Compact declares: "Federal permission for foreign student visas is intended to further America’s national interest to the extent the selected foreign students exhibit extraordinary talent that promises to make America stronger and more economically productive, and the selected students are introduced to, and supportive of, American and Western values, ultimately increasing global understanding and appreciation for the United States and our way of life. Universities that rely on foreign students to fund their institutions risk, among other things, potentially reducing spots available to deserving American students, and if not properly vetted, saturating the campus with noxious values such as anti-Semitism and other anti-American values, creating serious national security risks."

"Therefore, no more than 15% of a university’s undergraduate student population shall be participants in the Student Visa Exchange Program, and no more than 5% shall be from any one country. For schools presently over the 15% population, incoming matriculating classes should meet the 15% cap. Signatories pledge to select those foreign students on the basis of demonstrably extraordinary talent, rather than on the basis of financial advantage to the university; to screen out students who demonstrate hostility to the United States, its allies, or its values; and to provide instruction in American civics to all foreign students. Universities shall share all known information about foreign students, including discipline records, upon request and as relevant, with the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of State."

It is worth noting that most US colleges would be under that threshold in terms of the proportion of international students within their respective undergraduate populations. Those that are thought to be above the 15% limit include Carnegie Mellon University, Columbia University, Northeastern University, New York University, and Boston University.

The nine colleges that have reportedly received the Compact to date are:

• University of Arizona
• Brown University
• Dartmouth College
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
• University of Pennsylvania
• University of Southern California
• University of Texas at Austin
• University of Virginia
• Vanderbilt University

Of those, only Brown University and Dartmouth College are thought to be above (or close to) the 15% limit currently.

Extending a pattern?

Some observers see the Compact as the US administration's latest effort to "divide and conquer" the higher education sector in order to move some colleges towards an approach or perspective that is more closely aligned with the White House. At the every least, the administration has shown a willingness to pressure individual institutions into specific agreements that are tied to funding arrangements.

For additional background, please see:

• "US administration’s new H-1B policies create uncertainty around post-study work rights"
• "US proposes new rules for student visas including term limits and other restrictions"
• "US Office of Management and Budget grants budget reprieve to key exchange programmes"