Northwestern’s Office of International Student and Scholar Services alerted students Monday to new U.S. State Department screening guidelines for prospective nonimmigrant visa applicants — including those on F, M and J visas — in an email obtained by The Daily.
“All applicants for F, M, and J nonimmigrant visas will be instructed to adjust the privacy settings on all of their social media profiles to ‘public,’” the email read.
OISS’s email follows a series of federal announcements over the last couple of months, where the State Department said in a May press release that it plans to increase scrutiny of current and future student visa holders.
The office also said it is monitoring potential expansions to the Trump administration’s June travel restrictions, which currently apply to nationals of 19 countries as of June 4, according to a White House press release. Countries included in the restrictions include Afghanistan, Iran, Burundi, Cuba, Venezuela and more.
Additionally, the email said media reports indicate embassies are “being instructed to prioritize visa interview scheduling for physicians on J-1 educational exchange visas” and students applying to U.S. institutions where “international students make up 15% or less of the total student population.”
About 25% of the total NU student body is international, according to the International Student and Scholar Statistics 2023-2024 report. Of those, 18% are undergraduate students.
“We do not know any more than what you can read in the links provided,” OISS wrote in the email. “For individuals who still need to schedule a visa interview, Northwestern’s Office of International Student and Scholar Services encourages you to continue those efforts.”
Students are encouraged to check their email and the OISS website for further updates as the situation develops.
Email: [email protected]
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