The United States Will Be Worse off for Losing International Scientists

This story is about immigration policy and its effect on science research, not about home energy upgrades or rebates, so there is not much here that touches your own house directly.

The gist: changing visa rules, travel restrictions, and expanded screening are making international students and researchers rethink whether to build careers in the United States. Examples include a PhD student from India whose visa renewal was delayed for two months by new social media screening requirements, leading her to take a job in India instead of staying for a postdoctoral position she had lined up here. A survey of nearly 1,000 NIH-supported researchers found 14 percent said immigration policy changes had caused scientists, students, or postdocs to turn down lab positions. Among international students who earned physics PhDs in the US in 2025, 29 percent left the country afterward, the highest share in 30 years.

Universities have also had to adjust. New federal guidance this summer narrowed how schools can authorize practical training for international students working in internships tied to their studies, and some universities, including UCLA and UC Berkeley, paused or restricted parts of that program while reviewing the rules.

None of this changes anything about heat pumps, weatherization, or rebate programs. It is a look at how immigration policy is reshaping the scientific workforce, which researchers argue could eventually affect US innovation and research broadly, including in fields tied to energy and climate.