Interest in U of S surges amid concerns over U.S. ban
University sets up hotline for international students
The University of Saskatchewan's hotline to field questions about the United States' new travel and immigration policies has already received about a dozen calls.
U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping order bans travel from seven Muslim-majority countries. The school has about 150 international students who call the countries home.
Short-term and perhaps long-term we expect an uptick in interest in the U of S.- Michael Atkinson, acting provost, U of S
"It's hard for us to estimate the impact on them either individually or collectively," said Michael Atkinson, acting provost at the U of S.
What Atkinson does know for sure is that those international students directly affected by the tight new restrictions in the U.S. have concerns, hence the hotline.
Inquiries up from overseas
Trump's position on travel and immigration has also created concern among prospective international students, who may be re-thinking their top choice for studying abroad, Atkinson said. He thinks they are seeing Canada and the U of S in a new light.
"These developments underscore the kind of country that we are and why students elect to come here in the first place," Atkinson said.
"The traffic to our websites is up … expressions of interest: those are up. So, yes, short-term and perhaps long-term we expect an up-tick in interest in the U of S."
The U of S was swift in its condemnation of the U.S. move to impose the travel ban and slow down its immigration system with "extreme" vetting. The indictment came in a letter from U of S president Peter Stoicheff just days after Trump signed the executive order.
Atkinson said the university stands by that letter.
"Universities have a role in a civil society and that role is to reduce barriers to exchange of knowledge," he said.
"For us, borders are obviously there, but when it comes to collaborations, when it comes to going to conferences and knowledge exchange, we are definitely in principle behind removal of any barriers."
The U of S remains concerned that the new policies could have a long-term impact on conferences and research around the world.