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The 1970s era of academic exchange began as a form of diplomacy. “People were curious about us, inviting us to their homes,” one former student remembers.
May 30, 2025, 6:00 a.m. ET
In 1987, when Haipei Shue arrived in the United States as a student, he recalls receiving the warmest of welcomes. He was a graduate student in sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
“People were curious about us, inviting us to their homes, wanting to be friends,” Mr. Shue said on Thursday, describing an openness that defined his early years in a country then seen by many in China as a beacon of opportunity.
“It was an extraordinary time,” he said.
That era of academic exchange between China and the United States, beginning in the 1970s under President Jimmy Carter as a form of soft power diplomacy, now stands in sharp contrast to the Trump administration’s recent stance toward the country.
The administration announced this week that it would aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students with ties to the Chinese Communist Party or for those studying in broadly defined “critical fields.” The administration also plans to enhance vetting of future applicants for student visas, including looking at social media posts.
Those policies promise to reduce the number of students from China coming to the United States, who have been a fixture on American university campuses for decades. In 2024, there were roughly 277,000 students.
The Trump administration says China exploits U.S. universities to bolster its military and technological capabilities. And Trump officials argue that some Chinese students may pose risks of espionage and technology theft.
