New policy shift could derail US edge in global talent race
Writer: Mirella Franzese
September 2025 — Nearly one in every five workers are immigrants in the United States. But foreign talent is increasingly at risk as the new administration moves to axe its OPT Program — a major career pathway for international students seeking to live and work in the U.S. upon graduation.
The OPT is a temporary employment program for students on F-1 visas, allowing up to 12 months of work authorization before and after the completion of academics.
The program is a clear gateway for skilled young workers to fill critical jobs in the country, made even more pressing now as the U.S. faces growing labor concerns.
“Tighter immigration policy has led to an abrupt slowdown in labor force growth,” said Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell recently at a conference, sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.
While the labor market has struck a “curious balance” — resulting from a pronounced slowdown in both the supply and demand of workers — the downside risks to employment are rising, warned Powell.
“If those risks materialize, they can do so quickly in the form of sharply higher layoffs and rising unemployment,” he said. “The labor market is a case in point…labor force growth has slowed considerably this year with the sharp falloff in immigration, and the labor force participation rate has edged down in recent months.”
Despite the job market’s reliance on immigration, the Trump administration has proposed cutting the current OPT program, which is offered through the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). New USCIS Director Joseph Edlow recently announced his intention to terminate OPT employment authorizations for F-1 students after graduation, a move which would effectively dismantle America’s main immigrant talent pipeline.
In 2024, a total of 194,554 foreign students obtained work authorization through OPT, while 95,384 international students through STEM OPT, a program which offers a 24-month extension for roles in high-demand fields like Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.
Most international students decide to stay in the U.S. upon completion of their academic studies, but the majority of those find work in STEM industries, filling in essential workforce gaps in some of the fields most severely impacted by shortages .
A report from the Science & Technology Policy Institute estimates that around 65% to 69% of applicants for employment-based permanent residency — commonly temporary workers on visa — are employed in STEM industries. From the number of approvals granted between 2012 and 2022, this translates to around 80,000 to 88,000 new permanent residents per year working in STEM occupations.
This has boosted hiring appetite for foreign-born workers in recent years. For example, the number of international students hired by national companies jumped by 36.9% from 2022 to 2023.
Additionally, in industries like healthcare, where workforce shortages are particularly pronounced, employers are increasingly investing in foreign-born labor. The University of St. Thomas, for instance, offers an accelerated bachelor’s in nursing (ABSN), allowing students with prior credentials or pre-med backgrounds to become certified nurses in just one year.
“This is particularly helpful for international doctors who want to have a change of career and practice in the United States but need a different and faster path,” said the university’s Interim President Dempsey Rosales-Acosta in an interview with Invest:.
Immigrants as a whole make up a larger share of the STEM workforce than they do the total U.S. population. This ratio is particularly pronounced in states like New Jersey — where immigrants account for nearly 40% of all STEM workers, while making up only 20% of state residents — and Pittsburgh.
“Immigration is a major concern,” said Audrey Russo, president and CEO of the Pittsburgh Technology Council, an organization focused on supporting tech companies at all growth stages. “Historically, America has grown through immigration, and our region needs a renewed focus on attracting and retaining foreign-born talent.”
As Russo noted, in Pittsburgh, foreign-born residents earn some of the highest wages as they support high-tech disciplines, but the overall foreign-born population remains very low. “That points to a gap in how we’re building an inclusive, sustainable workforce,” she added.
On the national level, this speaks to a growing anxiety. The U.S. needs 4.6 million workers every year to avoid a labor crisis, according to a report by Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA). However, with exclusionary policies that discourage immigration, the nation could miss the mark in coming years. According to Migration Policy Institute Associate Director Julia Gelatt, immigration has been the major driving force behind U.S. labor force growth over the past 20 years, accounting for nearly 75% of all growth in the civilian, prime-age workforce (ages 25 to 54).
In more recent years, that percentage has increased. From 2019 to 2024, the U.S. labor force saw the addition of 479,000 U.S.-born workers, compared to 3.6 million foreign-born workers, according to research from the NFAP. In this period, immigrant workers drove nearly 88% of the labor force growth seen in America. “Immigrants on balance are net contributors to the U.S. economy when considering their contributions to the labor market, to overall economic growth, and to government coffers,” wrote Gelatt. The education industry as a whole is also likely to be affected by the new administration’s plans to discontinue OPT services. Without the program’s perks — which offer career prospects in the U.S. — international students may find it hard to justify paying for an American college degree, which is the most expensive in the world. The impact on U.S. universities, for one, may be significant during an already challenging time for educators. “Education in general, across the industry, is facing challenges in terms of enrollment and costs,” said Sonia BasSheva Mañjon, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts’s chief academic officer, in an interview with Invest:. “There was a time when higher education, at least public education, was heavily subsidized through federal money. That is not the case anymore,” added Mañjon . “Institutions are really having to think about their business models…How can we keep tuition costs at a place where it makes sense for students to want to make that investment.” While the U.S. is still a top choice for international students, many global applicants are now considering new destinations like the U.K due to lack of clarity from President Trump’s new immigration policies. For instance, the number of undergraduate applications in the U.K grew by 2.2% this fall. “The American brand has taken a massive hit, and the U.K. is the one that is benefiting,” said Mike Henniger, CEO of college consultancy Illume Student Advisory Services, to AP News.
For more information, please visit:
