Earlier this month, the University of Massachusetts Amherst made the decision to stop admitting native Iranians into some of their science and engineering graduate programs in an attempt to comply with a federal law. The law states that Iranian students will not receive a U.S. visa if they are studying “for a career in Iran’s petroleum, natural gas, nuclear energy, nuclear science or nuclear engineering fields.”
The State Department responded to the University of Massachusetts’s actions by deeming them unnecessary. They reached out to the University to discuss the decision, and few days later, the University decided to reverse its ruling. Michael Malone, Vice Chancellor for Research and Engagement, made the following statement:
“We have always believed that excluding students from admission conflicts with our institutional values and principles. It is now clear, after further consultation and deliberation, that we can adopt a less restrictive policy.”
Moving forward, the University will treat each Iranian foreign national on a case-by-case basis and provide them with “individual study plans to meet the requirements of federal sanctions law and address the impact on students.”
To learn more about how your university can ensure compliance when dealing with deemed exports like the students in this story, check out our white paper, Three Strategies for Proactive Compliance with Technology Export Controls.
For more information on the University of Massachusetts’s decision to ban – then allow – Iranian nationals to study certain subjects on their campus, you can read this USA Today article.
