International students in Tennessee are among the hundreds nationwide whose student visas have been suspended or terminated by the Trump administration, often to the surprise of the schools they attend.
Some of those students were less than a semester away from graduation.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said at a press conference last month that he’s revoked at least 300 visas of students he described as “lunatics.”
However, the number of students whose visas have been revoked is much higher, according to a tally by the NAFSA Association of International Educators, which has found nearly 1,000 instances, including the arrest or detention of international students.
NAFSA reports that there is no pattern in the nationalities of targeted students, and visa revocations are happening at all sorts of higher education institutions, from community colleges to Ivy League schools.
“There is still no transparency into the grounds for these revocations, nor is there any clear process for determining what the charges are against the student,” NAFSA said in its April 10 press release. “Due process is woefully absent.”
It’s no secret that immigration is a key issue for the Trump administration. Since inauguration day, President Donald Trump has signed numerous executive orders to deport foreign-born individuals. Trump signed eight immigration executive orders in his first week alone.
In the first 50 days of Trump’s second term, the Department of Homeland Security boasted 32,809 immigration enforcement arrests.
In Knox County alone, the number of ICE holds has skyrocked since Trump took office in January.
In November 2024, the Knox County Sheriff’s Department recorded 109 ICE holds. In March 2025, just four months later, there were 261 ICE holds, according to data compiled by Meghan Conley, a University of Tennessee professor and member of Allies of Knoxville’s Immigrant Neighbors.
Why are students getting their visas revoked?
As for the revocation of student visas, the only direct explanation from the U.S. Department of State is vague: “To keep our community safe.”
“Well, we’ve never gone into the details of the visa process,” Department of State spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in an April 8 press conference.
“We don’t discuss individual visas because of the privacy issues involved. We don’t go into statistics or numbers; we don’t go into the rationale for what happens with individual visas. What we can tell you is that the department revokes visas every day in order to secure our borders and to keep our community safe, and we’ll continue to do so.”
There are many legal reasons why a student could have their visa revoked, such as expulsion, unauthorized employment, or “otherwise failing to maintain status.”
What is an F-1 visa?
An F-1 is a type of nonimmigrant student visa that allows international students to enter the U.S. to pursue full-time academic studies in an accredited program, according to the State Department.
What is an M-1 visa?
An M-1 visa is similar to an F-1 visa, but for nonimmigrants to enroll in a vocational or other recognized nonacademic institution rather than a full-time academic program.
What happens if a student visa is revoked?
The student must leave the country immediately or risk deportation if the status of the student’s visa is changed in the government’s Student Exchange and Visitor Information System database.
A view of the pedestrian bridge during the first day of the fall semester on the University of Tennessee’s campus in Knoxville on Wednesday, August 23, 2023.
What is the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System?
The Student and Exchange Visitor Information System is the online system that the Department of Homeland Security uses to track F-1 and M-1 students’ status.
How many students have had their visa revoked?
The Trump administration won’t say.
NAFSA reported on Thursday, April 10, that there have been “almost 1,000 reports of international students and scholars either having their visa revoked and/or their record in SEVIS terminated.”
Have students in Tennessee had their student visas revoked?
At least 15 students in Tennessee have lost their visas.
The University of Tennessee Knoxville identified nine students whose visa status has changed. Three UT students and one former student working on campus were identified on April 4. Another five students had their visa status changed the following week.
University of Tennessee Chancellor Donde Plowman sent an email on April 4 to the campus community regarding the situation. The students’ and former student’s status were changed because they were “identified in a criminal records check,” according to Plowman’s email.
Six more international students at Middle Tennessee State University have also lost their valid student visas.
How many international students study in Tennessee?
There are more than 10,000 international students studying in Tennessee, according to the Higher Ed Immigration Portal.
Knox News Reporters Keenan Thomas and Tyler Whetstone contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Student visas revoked: How many in Tennessee? What to know