Chinese students’ visa delays bring protests but little help

University president sees threat to important asset for American universities and research institutions.

By: Amy Sennett
   When Bo Xu, a Chinese engineering student, applied for a U.S. visa in early July 2002, he was eager to begin his research in the Princeton University mechanical and aerospace engineering department. Little did he know he would not arrive in Princeton for another seven months.
   Mr. Xu is not alone in his struggle to obtain a visa and to begin his research in the United States. He is one of four Princeton graduate students in the sciences, among hundreds of other international scholars, who have faced extended delays obtaining visas, sacrificing valuable research and classroom time. The other Princeton students are Ming Pan, Fangfang Jiang and Tat Kee Tan.
   Mr. Xu finally arrived in Princeton in February and began his research just a few weeks ago. But the setback has forced him to play catch-up as a first-year graduate student.
   "I can’t do much on my research," he said. "The other students have everything done but I have to begin by myself." The other three students affected by the visa delays have recently returned as well.
   According to graduate student adviser Jennifer McNabb, the delays are the result of the U.S. State Department’s Technology Alert List that identifies "major fields of technology transfer concerns" in subjects such as computer technology, materials technology and chemical and biomedical engineering. If a student is working in one of these fields, a U.S. consulate officer must review the application and send it to Washington for special approval.
   Although the alert list had been in effect prior to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Ms. McNabb said processing times at many consulates have increased as the United States has implemented tighter homeland security policies.
   A Web site maintained by the Columbia University Chinese Students and Scholars Association lists the names of more than 200 students awaiting visa approval to attend graduate schools in the United States. Some have been delayed for over 300 days.
   During the seven months he waited in China for his visa, Mr. Xu contacted the U.S. embassy in China and Princeton University, but both said they "could do nothing," he said.
   "Many students are giving up plans to apply for universities in the United States and choosing instead to apply in other countries, mostly Canada and England," Mr. Xu said. "Or they gave up plans to study abroad and will continue their research in China."
   With the current visa system in place, Mr. Xu doubts he will return to China soon. "It is very dangerous to go back to China and visit family," he said. "There is a possibility that we couldn’t return to the U.S."
   Princeton University President Shirley Tilghman testified before the House Committee on Science on the issue March 26. At a hearing titled, "Dealing with Foreign Students and Scholars in the Age of Terrorism: Visa Backlogs and Tracking Systems," she said recent homeland security measures make it "almost certain" that foreign students in the sciences and engineering will face delays in obtaining visas to enter the country.
   "In my own field of biology, for example, it would be a very rare applicant who did not mention at least one of the key words or phrases on the ‘cheat sheets’ that consular officials have been advised to use in conducting their interviews," President Tilghman told the committee.
   Dr. Tilghman urged Congress to reinstate a pre-approval system that would screen foreign students before they leave the country, facilitating an easier return.
   Professor Daniel Marlow, chair of Princeton’s physics department, agreed with President Tilghman on the need for reform.
   "I think that the INS and the State Department risk alienating foreign visitors at all levels — student, post-doctorate and faculty — and that this could ultimately discourage some very talented people from coming to the U.S.," said Professor Marlow. "It is no secret that U.S. science and technology, like many aspects of U.S. society, is fueled by the best and brightest people coming from abroad and working very hard once they get here."
   In regard to the current visa system, Professor Marlow said, "I have the impression that the need to implement the new rules rapidly owing to legitimate national security concerns has resulted in a system that is not adequately staffed. In particular, I don’t think that the people charged with making these decisions always have suitable technical expertise.
   "Some technologies really are dangerous if placed in the wrong hands," Professor Marlow continued. "The vast majority, however, are not, and it doesn’t really make sense to say that anyone working in a physics lab is a potential threat."
   Fei Sun, head of the Association of Chinese Student and Scholars at Princeton, said that in contrast to previous years in which nearly one-third of first-year students returned home during the summer, few plan to return this summer.
   Mr. Sun also doubted the possibility of international travel for foreign students. "Those countries won’t give us a visa because we can’t get a visa back to the U.S. in their countries," said Mr. Sun. "I heard many canceled or modified their trips abroad to attend a conference."
   Mr. Sun said students have rerouted trips through China or Canada to avoid the need for a U.S. visa. But such detours are costly and time-consuming.
   "I talked with President Tilghman on the visa issue shortly after she testified before the Congress," said Mr. Sun. "I really appreciate her support to international students."
   A native of Canada, President Tilghman noted that foreign students are a tremendous asset to American universities and research institutions. Two-thirds of the foreign students who receive a U.S. doctorate in science and engineering stay in the country, she said.
   "I was one of those foreign students 25 years ago, and I have benefited enormously from the education I received in this country and the opportunities I have had to practice science for the last 25 years," she said.
   President Tilghman acknowledged that the nation’s universities must perform a precarious balancing act. "We are trying to balance two exceedingly important objectives: to minimize the risk that our laboratories and the materials in them will be used for terrorist purposes, and to maximize the likelihood that the American scientific enterprise will continue to flourish as it has for the last 50 years," she said.
   President Tilghman underscored the significant contributions to the nation’s science and technology fields by foreign students, saying, "I really believe that if this country is to sustain its international leadership role in science and technology, it must continue to engage the very best students and scholars from around the world."