Today on our podcast: Indian students dreaming of American campuses now find themselves in limbo. After a decision to pause student‐visa interviews and expand social media screening, many say their plans have been thrown off course. Some are quietly deleting posts and unfollowing friends, others swapping tips in encrypted group chats, and a few even praying at so-called “visa temples.”

“I have carefully built my profile to be able to get into the top policy programs in the U.S.,” says Kaushik Sharma. “I don’t want to go there and be in a constant state of fear.” Career counselor Karan Gupta reports he’s been flooded with calls: “There are students with admission letters who don’t know if they will get visa appointments, and those in the U.S. worried about their visa status.”

A third of all foreign students in the United States are from India, but rising doubts have led many to reconsider Britain or Singapore, or simply hold backup offers. As one law‐school admittee puts it, she’s keeping her British acceptance “on standby, just in case things get crazier.”
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