Recent federal visa changes are reshaping the lives of Washington and Lee’s international students — making travel, job searches and academic planning increasingly uncertain.
With 178 international students enrolled at the university, each policy update can determine whether a student can return home, re-enter the U.S. or work after graduation.
Most W&L undergraduates hold F-1 visas, which allow full-time study and work tied to their field. Others come on J-1 visas for short-term exchanges, often requiring a return home. After graduation, F-1 students can apply for Optional Practical Training (OPT), enabling up to one year of work related to their major, with an extra two years for STEM fields.
In December, the State Department expanded social media screening for F, J, and H visas, requiring applicants to make their profiles public. Consulates also ended many visa interview waivers and mandated that students from over 50 countries renew visas only in their home country, often issuing single-entry visas valid for just months.
These changes have turned planning into what Abid Jeem, ’26, called a “probability game” where travel, jobs and graduation hinge on shifting rules.
“Planning has become more difficult,” said Hunter Swanson, associate director for international education. Swanson shares updates via email and HomeBase, W&L’s advising platform.
Social media vetting, the end of interview waivers and shorter visa validity periods mean leaving the U.S. could risk being unable to return — even in cases of family emergencies or holidays.
Jeem, a physics and computer science major from Dhaka, Bangladesh, said the rules have reshaped his goals and his role as a head career fellow.
“With these recent policies, not only are there more obstacles, there’s also a sentiment change,” he said. “The feeling is claustrophobia.”
Jeem said he once envisioned a clear path into the tech industry and an H-1B visa, which authorizes U.S. employers to hire foreign workers in specialty occupations. Jeem’s plan changed in September when a presidential proclamation briefly added a $100,000 fee to many H-1B applications. Later, officials clarified that F-1 students already in the U.S. were exempt.
Seeing how quickly rules can change, Jeem said he is now considering a Ph.D. because it would let him extend his student visa for several more years.
“If you are an international student, the system is rigged against you,” he said. “You have to be so good that they can’t ignore you.”
Younger students now ask him not just about internships, but also how to cope with uncertainty.
“I feel like I’m more of a therapist now than a peer career advisor,” he said.
Despite challenges, Swanson said most W&L international graduates still find strong opportunities.
Of 33 international students in the class of 2025, 26 are working on OPT in consulting, tech or health care with employers like Bain, Microsoft and the Mayo Clinic. Others are in graduate programs in the U.S. and abroad.
“The vast majority of our international graduates are successfully navigating the current environment,” Swanson said. “But this requires considerably more planning and flexibility than it did even last year.”
He said he advises students to create multiple backup plans, including one outside of the U.S. The Ruscio Center for Global Learning is expanding programs highlighting opportunities in other countries, including a webinar with the Canadian Embassy.
Rapid policy changes take a toll on students’ well-being, Swanson said.
“These aren’t abstract policy questions for them,” he said. “They’re deeply personal decisions with real consequences.”
Jeem said domestic students often underestimate the uncertainty their international classmates face. Over time, many come to realize that those students’ future is “very much uncertain and held on a string,” a reality that shapes both their academic and personal choices. The next policy shift could redraw their path yet again.
