The US Justice Department is preparing to examine Stanford University's foreign funding policies and practices related to international students and admissions, Harmeet Dhillon, who leads the department's Civil Rights Division, said on Aug. 17 in an interview at Bloomberg's Washington office.
Justice Department signals Stanford scrutiny over foreign funding and admissions
The US Justice Department is preparing to examine Stanford University's foreign funding policies and practices related to international students and admissions, Harmeet Dhillon, who leads the department's Civil Rights Division, said on Aug. 17 in an interview at Bloomberg's Washington office.
Dhillon's division opened an investigation into admissions practices at Stanford's medical school in March. Stanford, located in Palo Alto, California, has drawn less federal scrutiny than peers such as Harvard and Columbia, which have faced Trump administration actions over allegations of antisemitism and discriminatory admissions practices.
Asked why Stanford had not faced comparable pressure, Dhillon said the university was not being passed over 'because of their virtue,' adding: 'It's because I am staffing up.'
Stanford ranks fourth among US universities in funding received from foreign sources in 'countries of concern,' according to data from the Department of Education. Dhillon also said she was concerned about funding for professors and laboratories handling information that is sensitive from a national security standpoint. 'I think it's fairly obvious which of our elite institutions have a high proportion of foreign funding,' she said. 'Stanford has a high proportion of foreign students from Asia and foreign funding.'
In June, Dhillon's office launched a probe into Harvard University over possible foreign influence in its financial aid decisions, and she said she plans to investigate more colleges over similar issues. After taking office in 2025, Dhillon sent letters to 50 top institutions of higher education scrutinizing their undergraduate admissions practices, and followed those with additional letters to law and medical schools.
The Trump administration froze federal funding to more than half a dozen universities before Dhillon was sworn in. She said she subsequently took a leading role in negotiating settlements to restore funding, including with Cornell University. Harvard remains in a legal dispute with the administration over its funding freeze and has not reached a settlement. Dhillon said talks with Harvard had slowed but that she still sees a path to a possible agreement.
- The source does not identify which specific countries are classified as 'countries of concern' for purposes of the Department of Education data cited.
- The source does not state the dollar amount of Stanford's foreign funding from countries of concern.
- The source does not specify a timeline for when the Justice Department's expanded review of Stanford is expected to begin or conclude.
- The source does not state whether Stanford was contacted by the Justice Department prior to publication or given a formal opportunity to respond beyond its written statement.
- The source does not detail the specific terms of the settlements Dhillon said she negotiated with Cornell or other universities.
- The source does not report Harvard's response to Dhillon's characterization of settlement talks.
Read the original at The Straits Times