特朗普政府不断变化的签证政策导致哥伦比亚大学的国际生申请人数大幅下降，并促使该大学暂停了其新闻学院一个硕士项目的招生，四位知情人士透露。
The Trump administration’s changing visa policies caused a sharp drop in international applications to Columbia University and contributed to the university pausing admissions to one of its journalism programmes, four people familiar with the matter said.
新闻学院于10月1日宣布，为进行“关键评估”，将暂停其文学硕士项目的招生，但未进一步说明具体原因。
The journalism school announced on Oct 1 that it was pausing admissions to its Master of Arts offering to conduct a “critical evaluation”, without giving further details about the reasons.
新闻学院院长杰拉尼·科布表示，文学硕士项目的招生将暂停一年，以便学院重新设计这个创立于2005年的学位课程，当时“新闻就业市场的格局截然不同”。
Jelani Cobb, the journalism school’s dean, said admissions to its Master of Arts programme would pause for one year while the school reworked a degree created in 2005, when the “journalism marketplace looked different”.
科布告诉路透社：“签证动态以及其他诸多因素都是考量的一部分。”他补充道，该系还需要时间来思考项目的改革。
“The dynamics of visas and all those other kinds of things were part of the consideration,” Cobb told Reuters. Additionally, the department needs time to think through changes to the programme, he added.
招生暂停与美国签证政策之间的关联此前未曾被报道，暂停招生的时长也未曾披露。
The connection between the admissions pause and US visa policies has not been previously reported, nor has the length of the admissions pause.
国际申请人数的下降显示了美国总统特朗普签证政策的不确定性，是如何影响这所顶尖美国新闻学府的，该学院同时也负责颁发新闻界最高荣誉——普利策奖。知情人士未透露申请人数下降的具体幅度。
The drop in international applications shows how uncertainty over US President Donald Trump’s visa policies is affecting one of the preeminent US journalism institutions, which also administers the profession’s highest US honour, the Pulitzer Prize. The people did not disclose the exact size of the drop in applications.
去年，特朗普政府曾暂时叫停新的学生签证预约，随后恢复预约但扩大了对申请人网络活动的审查，称此举是为了识别对美国国家安全的潜在威胁。
Last year, the Trump administration temporarily halted new student-visa appointments, then resumed them with expanded screening of applicants’ online activity, saying the checks were needed to identify potential threats to US national security.
2024年，哥伦比亚大学因亲巴勒斯坦校园抗议活动成为特朗普政府的打击目标之一。去年，该校同意支付超过2亿美元以解决联邦调查，并收回了大部分被暂停的联邦资助。
Columbia was among the universities targeted by his administration over pro-Palestinian campus protests in 2024. Last year, it agreed to pay over US$200 million to settle federal investigations and regain most of its suspended federal funding.
今年出台的一项新规还试图限制外国学生和记者在不申请延期的情况下在美国停留的时间，但一名联邦法官在该规则于上个月生效前将其叫停，并称其理由“极其薄弱”。
A new rule this year also sought to limit how long foreign students and journalists could stay in the US without seeking extensions, but a federal judge blocked it before it took effect last month, calling its rationale “exceptionally weak”.
这四位知情人士表示，由于签证困难和移民政策的不确定性，有意向的海外哥伦比亚新闻学院学生被劝退，他们要求匿名以讨论招生情况。知情人士称，国际学生约占硕士（MA）项目招生人数的一半。
Reliance on international students Visa difficulties and immigration policy uncertainty have deterred prospective Columbia journalism students from abroad, the four people said, requesting anonymity to discuss its admissions. International students make up roughly half of the MA programme’s enrollment, the people said.
《The Intercept》报道称，获哥伦比亚大学数据新闻学理学硕士（MS）项目录取的印度记者Kaushik Raj去年被拒发美国学生签证。据报道，拒签信称他未能证明与印度有足够的联系，以确保学成归国。
Kaushik Raj, an Indian journalist admitted to Columbia’s separate Master of Science (MS) programme in data journalism, was denied a US student visa last year, the Intercept reported. His rejection letter said he had not shown sufficient ties to India to establish he would return after his studies, according to the report.
MA项目面向寻求政治、商业、科学等领域专业知识的中坚记者，规模小于面向新闻经验较少学生的MS项目。学校并未暂停MS项目。
Geared toward mid-career journalists seeking expertise in subjects such as politics, business and science, the MA programme is smaller than the MS programme aimed at students with less journalism experience. The school is not pausing the MS programme.
两位知情人士表示，招生人数下降促使MA项目做出调整，包括在2024-25学年将科学和政治研讨课合并。
Lower enrollment has prompted changes to the MA programme, including the combination of science and politics seminars in the 2024-25 academic year, two of the people familiar with the matter said.
10月1日，学校还宣布推出为期两年的在线非全日制MS项目。此举可能让哥伦比亚大学在无需签证的情况下招收国际学生，但Cobb表示这与暂停MA招生无关，因为两个项目服务的学生群体不同。新闻业的变革动态MA项目暂停之际，新闻机构正努力应对AI重塑新闻生产和发现方式的潜力，而搜索流量下降则给其业务带来了压力。
On Oct 1, the school also announced a two-year, part-time online MS programme. The move could allow Columbia to enroll international students without visas, but Cobb said it was unrelated to the MA admissions pause because the programmes serve different students. Changing dynamics of journalism The MA pause comes as news organisations grapple with AI’s potential to reshape how stories are produced and found, while falling search traffic piles pressure on their business.
据《新闻界报》（Press Gazette）的统计追踪，去年英国和美国至少削减了3,434个新闻岗位。英国广播公司（BBC）和美国新闻机构CBS新闻今年已宣布裁员。
Last year, at least 3,434 journalism jobs were cut in Britain and the United States, according to a Press Gazette tracker. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and American news outlet CBS News have announced layoffs this year.
10月1日，一些记者在社交媒体上批评该文学硕士（MA）项目学制太短、学费太高。该课程为期九个月，哥伦比亚大学估计在获得资助前的在校费用为12万美元。
Some journalists took to social media on Oct 1 to criticise the MA programme as too short and too expensive. The course spans nine months and Columbia estimates the cost of attendance at US$120,000 before financial aid.
为期一年的数据新闻学理学硕士（MS）项目费用约为18万美元。
The year-long MS in data journalism costs about US$180,000.
两位知情人士表示，由于大多数学生都能获得资助，经济援助使得学费不再是主要阻碍。
Two of the people familiar with the matter said the financial assistance made tuition less of a deterrent because most students receive financial aid.
根据其网站显示，约80%的学生获得经济援助，包括来自机构、联邦和私人资金的助学金、贷款或奖学金。
About 80 per cent of the students receive financial aid, including grants, loans, or scholarships from institutional, federal and private funds, according to its website.
科布表示，新闻学院希望为MA项目制定新的筹款策略，并考虑开设非全日制版本。
Cobb said the journalism school wants to create a new fundraising strategy for the MA programme and is considering starting a part-time version.