The new federal rule eliminates the “duration of status,” a policy that allowed international students to remain in the U.S. for as long as it took to complete their academic program. Under the new rules, however, international students say those decisions must now be made much earlier. In the 2024-2025 academic year, the total number of international students in the U.S. rose 4.5% to a record 1,177,766. California hosted the largest number of international students, followed by New York and Texas, which recorded the fastest growth among the top states. The student his university’s International Student Office had expressly advised him to avoid protests and political posts.