Visas of 6 international students at UNC-Chapel Hill terminated by Trump administration
The federal government has terminated the visas of half a dozen international students at UNC-Chapel Hill, according to the university’s media relations office.
According to a statement from the office provided to The News & Observer, the university’s International Student and Scholars Services office is aware, as of Tuesday, “that the Student Exchange and Visitor Program records of six of our international students have been terminated by the U.S. government.”
It is unclear if the students have left the United States for their home countries, which are also unknown. It is also unclear if the students are continuing their studies with the university.
In response to questions from The N&O seeking that information, a spokesperson wrote that the university would not provide it in order to “maintain student confidentiality.”
International students are required to obtain visas to enroll and study at colleges around the United States. In addition to visas, international students are assigned records in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, or SEVIS, a federal database maintained by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
If a student’s visa is revoked, it does not automatically mean they must leave the country. But if a student’s SEVIS record is terminated — as the UNC students’ records were, according to the university — they are deemed “out of status” and could be subject to deportation or other removal proceedings, an immigration attorney previously told The N&O.
“ISSS staff communicate regularly with international students and scholars, as well as their departments, advisors and supervisors, about regulatory changes and their immigration status,” the university said in its statement. “ISSS is available to advise, answer questions and provide resources to all university-sponsored international students and scholars.”
ISSS, which is part of the university’s global affairs division, is the main office for immigration advising and processing university-sponsored immigration benefits.
The terminations of the UNC students’ visas comes after similar revocations at NC State University and, reportedly, at Duke University, as well as dozens of universities around the country.
The administration of President Donald Trump in recent weeks has increasingly targeted international university students, especially those who have participated in pro-Palestinian protests, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio also ordering federal officials to scrutinize the social media accounts of those applying for student visas.
It is unclear if any of the UNC students who lost their visas had participated in protests, or why their visas were revoked.
According to Inside Higher Ed and the New York Times, the Trump administration has terminated roughly 150 student visas in recent weeks, though the number is considered to be a significant under-count and is growing by the day.
Last week, NC State announced two students from Saudi Arabia had left the United States after learning their visas and SEVIS records had been terminated. NC State Chancellor Randy Woodson told The N&O that both students were in “good standing,” and that the university had not received a reason for the revocations from the federal government.
On Monday, Duke officials sent an email to the university’s international students announcing that the visas of two students and an alumnus had been terminated, the Duke Chronicle reported. A Duke spokesperson has not responded to The N&O’s request for confirmation of those terminations.
UNC, Duke and NC State each host thousands of international students on their campuses each year.
According to federal data, Duke last year enrolled more than 5,900 international students, the most of any university in the state. NC State followed close behind, with 5,475 international students, the second-most in the state and the most of any public university. UNC ranked fourth in the state and third in the UNC System, with more than 3,150 international students.
This story was originally published April 8, 2025 at 5:37 PM with the headline "Visas of 6 international students at UNC-Chapel Hill terminated by Trump administration."
