The Trump administration’s proposals, including the Compact for Academic Excellence, are reshaping university policies by imposing new conditions on federal funding related to admissions, hiring, and campus speech. Multiple higher education leaders and lawmakers expressed concern that such compacts threaten institutional autonomy and academic freedom while potentially restricting international student enrollment. Pennsylvania legislators moved to bar state-funded colleges from signing the Trump compact, citing threats to independence. Additionally, lawsuits challenge the Trump administration’s steep new fee for H-1B visas upon colleges and research institutions. These developments come amid broader debates on admissions transparency, free speech restrictions, and federal funding priorities, deepening uncertainties in the higher education landscape.