‘Universities in Hong Kong should help banned international students from Harvard’
Education minister Christine Choi urges ‘proactive’ support after bombshell Trump administration move targeting Ivy League university
Hong Kong authorities have urged local tertiary education institutions to offer support for Harvard University students whose dreams have been dashed after the US barred the Ivy League school from enrolling international candidates, many of whom are from mainland China.
At least five local universities on Friday invited those affected by the bombshell move to apply, while an education consultant said it had received calls from distraught parents of “furious” children who had been accepted at Harvard.
According to US authorities, current international students at the university must also either transfer or leave the country. The US Department of Homeland Security cited the university’s alleged “coordinated activity” with the Communist Party of China as part of the reasoning for the ban, which marks a sharp escalation of the row between the Trump administration and the Massachusetts-based global leader in education.
Just before midnight, US media reported that a federal judge had blocked the Trump administration’s move.
Secretary for Education Christine Choi Yuk-lin called on local universities to step up by attracting talent and building the city’s “study in Hong Kong” brand.
“In response to the ban on Harvard University recruiting international students, the Education Bureau has immediately contacted local universities to call on them to take proactive action,” she said in a social media post.