Universities Oppose Proposed Rules on Research Involving International Students

Organizations that represent research universities have been negotiating with federal agencies over proposed regulations that they fear would effectively prevent many international students from participating in studies financed by business. Currently international students generally may work on basic research, but there are more restrictions on classified research. The new regulations would make research subject to proprietary review by corporate sponsors ineligible for the basic research exemption. Such a rule would exclude international students from too many studies, and would not provide essential protections to American interests, the groups argue. The issue has been being discussed for months, and a new version of the rules may be proposed soon. The groups that are representing universities are the Association of American Universities, the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, and the Council on Governmental Relations.