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I am an Iranian CS student. I had a fully funded PhD admission at one of the US universities. I was admitted for the Fall 2016 semester. I am currently in Iran

I am an Iranian CS student. I had a fully funded PhD admission at one of the US universities. I was admitted for the Fall 2016 semester. I am currently in Iran due to my visa not being issued despite the 7 months I have waited for it. I was able to defer my admission to Spring 2017 semester, but then _this_ happened. I am quite sure that I will never be able to attend this program. I had very high hopes for my future because of this admission. I was very sad today after hearing this news. I have to come up with a new plan for my life, since it never occurred to me that I would not be able to attend. Edit: Thanks for all the support from the HN community.

dannylandau 10y ago
This might sound like a crazy idea, but why not try applying to a few Israeli universities: Tel Aviv University, Weizmann Institute, Hebrew University and Technion are considered to pretty top notch for Computer science and have a few Turing award winners. You'd be surprised that Israeli academics tend to be very welcoming of students from all over the world.
- digitalengineer 10y ago
  That is not without danger, I believe. Having Israeli stamps in your Iranien passport...
  - Gustomaximus 10y ago
    Wrong. Israel will stamp a separate piece of paper to leave in your passport during your visit for exactly this reason.
    - notahacker 10y ago
      Having records of a their Israeli degree all over the internet is probably a bigger problem for somebody intending to return to Iran at some point in the near future, even if only just to visit.
    - cylinder 10y ago
      Iranian government has spies everywhere and keeps pretty comprehensive lists of citizens they don't like and will harass them and throw them in prison, or executive them, on a whim when they try to re-enter.
- deleted 10y ago
  [deleted]
- jpatokal 10y ago
  Israeli society, however, is increasingly less and less tolerant of non-Jews. For example: http://www.timesofisrael.com/chief-rabbi-non-jews-shouldnt-be-allowed-to-live-in-israel/ http://www.timesofisrael.com/chief-rabbi-non-jews-shouldnt-b... But an even bigger problem is going to be the Iranian government, which is really not keen on Iranians consorting with the Zionist entity. Even if the OP by some miracle managed to pull this off, they would run a very real risk of ending up in prison as a suspected Israeli spy.
  - thebiglebrewski 10y ago
    Haha wow. Have you ever even been to Israel? Some of the most welcoming and loving people I've ever met. Sure, I'm Jewish, but I've also seen many average Israelis talk about their love for all and desire for peace. There are extremists in every community.
    - some-guy 10y ago
      My Mexican friend visited with my fiancé (who is Jewish) and was detained, and then subsequently released over 6 times in a two week period without any warning, being questioned "are you Palestinian? Are you Muslim? What are you doing here?" I don't think the point is about the citizens themselves, it's about how they normalize this kind of behavior by their police / government.
      - thebiglebrewski 10y ago
        Unfortunately that's what happens when your state is under constant threat. Yes, the IDF and Israeli security forces do use profiling and I'm not saying I'm a fan. But they are the best in the world. They're very good at extracting information. I don't agree with that kind of behavior either frankly, but it's a wonder the country is as safe as it is under constant threat. It's kind of a no-win situation for them. If they don't do that and are overcautious, they get attacked more. If they do, they get attacked for doing it. I'm sorry for what happened to your Mexican friend and I hope he receives better treatment in the future.
flexie 10y ago
In Europe, there are many excellent universities and many countries with visas for phd students. Just come to Europe. Once your phd is bagged, the US will have another president, and you can go there (unless you like Europe too much by then).
cyberferret 10y ago
I am sympathetic to your plight. Why not do as the article suggests and apply to Australia or Canada for your studies? Not sure of the availability of funded PhD research programmes here (Australia), but it may yield quicker results at the moment.
mnkypete 10y ago
It hurts so much to read stories like this, where politics stands in the way of education, especially when the university already approved. Have you thought about coming to Germany? Not the US, but not bad either.. https://www.daad.de/deutschland/stipendium/en/ https://www.daad.de/deutschland/stipendium/en/
CobrastanJorji 10y ago
On behalf of my fellow Americans, please allow me to offer you our deepest apology. Please know that most of our country doesn't hate or fear you. We will continue to do everything we can to fight this policy and others like it.
- saiya-jin 10y ago
  of course you don't, political elite never represents common folks out there (that includes supposedly evil places like North Korea, Iran, Iraq etc.). americans are, by my personal experience great people. america's loss, some other place gain (judging from OP description, he won't have big troubles getting someplace else). to OP - don't worry, seeing where US us steadily going after 9/11, without any attempt to even slow down, there are much better places to live, if you value things like true freedom. as somebody coming from Iran, I would presume so...
- StavrosK 10y ago
  > We will continue to do everything we can to fight this policy and others like it. You say that, but I'm afraid the implication might be "short of doing anything that matters". Where are the protests? Why aren't people in the streets? Don't make the same mistake Germans did under Hitler. The government relies on each step affecting few enough people that nobody will be bothered enough to march, and after a thousand little steps, you have a totalitarian government.
  - yummyfajitas 10y ago
    There are fairly large and violent protests against Trump. His supporters are regularly attacked. This has been true ever since he was a serious candidate. http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/riots-break-out-washington-over-9660568 http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/riots-break-out-wash... http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/inauguration-2017/anti-trump-protesters-pepper-sprayed-eve-inauguration-outside-deploraball-d-n709321 http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/inauguration-2017/anti-trum... http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2016/08/hillary-supporters-crash-trump-fundraiser-beat-rob-supporters-entering-mn-convention-center/ http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2016/08/hillary-supporters-c... https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/06/03/ugly-bloody-scenes-in-san-jose-as-protesters-attack-trump-supporters-outside-rally/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/06/0... In addition to violent (and some non-violent) protests, you also have direct action targeting his supporters. People who support Trump, or are mistakenly believed to support him, or just random passerby, are being assaulted (and in some cases, kidnapped or shot). https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/21/us/politics/richard-spencer-punched-attack.html?_r=0 https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/21/us/politics/richard-spenc... https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jan/04/facebook-live-stream-video-man-attacked-chicago-trump https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jan/04/facebook-liv... http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/police-release-man-arrested-in-uw-shooting/ http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/police-releas... Do these things count as "anything that matters"?
huevosabio 10y ago
The situation is deplorable. I would suggest applying to Canada (as others have suggested), Machine Learning seems to be quite strong there. Otherwise, many of the application processes are still open in many European universities (if I recall from my time applying to grad school, ETH deadline as well as other continental universities are due sometime during Spring). Edit: typos
jkimmel 10y ago
I am deeply saddened to read this. I apologize, on behalf of the country. Please know that the majority of people in the US do not support this policy. We want to see you reach your potential. We want to benefit from the talent you would bring. Many of us will be working hard to fix this for the next several years. I'm sorry I couldn't do more to prevent it from happening in the first place.
- rtx 10y ago
  Why? Everyone should not get a visa. Country should have a right to decide whom they let in. I never heard anyone complaining when the rich got visa more easily than poor.
  - macintux 10y ago
    Countries should vet who they let in. They shouldn't blanket ban a country because of its leaders' policies, or else pretty soon US citizens won't be able to travel anywhere due to global disgust with Trump's bozocity.
  - mikeash 10y ago
    I've heard lots of complaining about the ability of the rich to effectively buy visas. As for why? Because this blanket ban is not useful, it violates the spirit of religious freedom, and it's going to cause a lot of real harm both to people who want to come here, and to our own country due to excluding people who will make us better.
- gspetr 10y ago
  > Please know that the majority of people in the US do not support this policy. This seems to be false: http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-taps-americans-wariness-about-immigration-ap-poll-n476831 http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-taps-americans-war... In the poll, 54 percent of Americans, including about three-quarters of Republicans, about half of independents and over a third of Democrats, said the United States takes in too many immigrants from the Middle East. http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/current_events/immigration/december_2015/voters_like_trump_s_proposed_muslim_ban http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/curr... Among all voters, 46% favor a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States, while 40% are opposed. Fourteen percent (14%) are undecided.
orbifold 10y ago
Try to come to Germany, lots of Iranian expats study and work here. There are a few very good CS programs aswell (TU Munich for example). Most Phd positions come with a salary of ~1700-3400€ a month and there are no significant tuition fees. You might need to do a two year master degree first though, those are usually not funded, but there are no tuition fees either. Courses on the Phd and Masters level are taught in English.
- donquichotte 10y ago
  Same in Switzerland. Check out ETHZ or EPFL.
- shams93 10y ago
  Google even has a location in Germany so if you were planning on getting a PHD in the US and then moving into working for Google most likely you could take the same kind of path in Germany but without the tremendous education debt.
- adrianN 10y ago
  Here is a fully funded program: http://gradschool.cs.uni-saarland.de/ http://gradschool.cs.uni-saarland.de/ You get 800€ during your master and about twice that during your PhD. The institute is really good and there are two Max Planck Institutes (Informatics and Software Systems) right on campus. The program is entirely in English.
zouhair 10y ago
Try to create a group of people in a predicament like yours and start contacting Universities in Canada and talk to them about what can they do for you.
perfmode 10y ago
Universities ought to offer deferred admission to international admits from countries on the list. We ought to demand it.
- sangnoir 10y ago
  Deferred until when, exactly? A year? 4 years? 8? It is unfair to expect the students to put their lives on hold indefinitely. I say they should pursue their education in places that welcome them like Canada or Germany.
  - perfmode 10y ago
    A year would be a start
throwaway99oi9 10y ago
I'm an immigrant too - I've been here 9 years, but now I'm getting out. Canada, Australia and New Zealand are viable options for me, and I've already been invited by 2 of these countries. Don't be disheartened. You're smart (you got a fully funded PhD), and the world is very big, with many opportunities. Good luck!
- mmrezaie 10y ago
  I want to second this. I also had a Ph.D. full fund in the USA but I went to Sweden, and why? Well in that time I had an opportunity to work and fund an start up and boy I am so lucky to find my supervisor in Sweden (over a simple phone call). Compared to the USA, universities in Sweden, offer far more support to for patents and starting your startups. You essentially get all the support and university won't own your work. You may think what happened to you is bad (and it is) but sometimes it turns to a new and better opportunity.
- mabbo 10y ago
  Come check Toronto. Very immigrant-rich city, very welcoming and very multicultural. The winters sometimes suck, but I find that brings us all together because nobody likes -10C.
nerfhammer 10y ago
My deepest apologies to you for the mindless horror that has taken hold of this country. Best of luck, brother.
NicoJuicy 10y ago
Europe still has some of the best universities and allowance programs :)
- tiatia 10y ago
  Well, Europe has Oxford and Cambridge and?
  - matt4077 10y ago
    Continental Europe tends towards having many "good" institutions at the expense of not having the extreme stand-outs like Stanford, MIT, or Harvard. There are also departments within universities which are excellent and well-known in their fields without being as well-known by the general public, as well as research institutes separate from universities, like the Max-Planck societies or EMBL. Overall, I'd say the model makes it harder for something like Google to be created in Europe, but it makes it easier to get an education that will get you a job at Google.
  - iainmerrick 10y ago
    The UK alone also has places like Imperial College, UCL, Warwick and Manchester, with top-notch CS departments. In Scotland alone there's Glasgow (birthplace of the Glasgow Haskell Compiler) and Edinburgh (birthplace of Prolog). As another commenter noted, mainland Europe tends to spread their academic resources rather than focusing on a few prestige sites like Oxford and Cambridge, but there are many fantastic CS departments. I don't know the current hot areas, but when I was a researcher in the early 2000s, there was lots of Haskell activity in Chalmers and TU Berlin.
VickBear 10y ago
I would bet you will still be able to attend soon. If you read the draft of the executive order you'd see that it is a temporary ban until they can start the improved vetting process. Your hopes should be way higher!
tempestn 10y ago
I can personally recommend the University of Waterloo, here in Canada. I did my Master's degree there in electrical engineering. The school has an excellent, and well recognized, CS program, and a significant percentage of both the graduate student body and the faculty (at least when I was there 8 years ago or so) were from Iran. Waterloo itself isn't a particularly large city, but with two universities it has a significant student population, and it's not far from Toronto for anytime you're interested in more of a big city cultural experience. Of course there are a number of excellent universities here in Canada; if Waterloo isn't to your liking, maybe check out UBC here on the west coast. I really hope, as Scott suggests in the post, that a silver lining to this situation is that we have an opportunity to welcome more people like you into Canada. Edit: I could even put you in touch with my old supervising professor (who's also from Iran) if you like; he's in the Engineering faculty as opposed to CS, but I'm sure he would know who to refer you to.
- RRRA 10y ago
  ^ This! Or if you are into AI, university of Montreal is also a hot bed right now with Mr Bengio. Canadians will gladly take you, in fact I know an Iranian who just finished his math phd... Courage! :)
  - graeham 10y ago
    And U of Toronto has one of the top Neural Networks groups anywhere. UBC is also a great university in a nice city.
- it_learnses 10y ago
  yeah Waterloo has a great program. I've known a few Iranian students who were disappointed by University of Victoria and then went to Waterloo.
tallanvor 10y ago
I can't say much more than I'm sorry. Remember: Donald Trump does not represent the will of the American people. He won the electoral college, but around 2.8 million more people voted for Clinton than voted for him. He does not represent our values, our morals, or our view of where the country should be going. He represents those straight white males who don't want to adapt to the future, who don't want to give up their power, and who don't recognize that America can only be successful when we help the world be successful. I'll be honest, I think Trump is going to cost universities, labs, and businesses a lot of very smart people. I hope we'll be able to recover from the damage he's going to do, but I honestly don't know just how bad it will get.
- adventured 10y ago
  Trump very clearly represents the will of an immense number of people and may represent the will of the majority of Americans in fact. For both Clinton and Trump that representation is far beyond those that actually voted. Clinton's camp will be the first to tell you that supposedly a lot of her supporters didn't vote in the election. You say Trump represents straight white males (you imply that's all he represents). Trump won the vote of 53% of white women. Trump won the popular vote in 30 of the 50 states. The popular vote in just two states - NY & CA, neither of which Trump could have ever competed in - determined that popular vote gap. The facts don't support your premise at all.
  - panic 10y ago
    The only relevant fact here is that millions more people voted against Trump than for him. The top reason people voted for Trump wasn't to support him or his policies, it was that he wasn't Clinton (http://www.people-press.org/2016/09/21/in-their-own-words-why-voters-support-and-have-concerns-about-clinton-and-trump/ http://www.people-press.org/2016/09/21/in-their-own-words-wh...). His approval rating is below 50% (http://www.gallup.com/poll/201617/gallup-daily-trump-job-approval.aspx http://www.gallup.com/poll/201617/gallup-daily-trump-job-app...). Trump doesn't represent the majority in any sense of the word.
    - 10y ago
gajomi 10y ago
A quick word of advice... I have seen firsthand people in similar logistical situations in the middle of the PhD (though not quite precipitated from such dire geopolitical circumstances). If your admission was based on a recommendation of a faculty at the same institute get in contact with them as they may have contacts in others countries looking for similar students. If they are senior faculty they may even have dual appointments at institutes outside of the US. If there are no leads on those fronts, I suppose I can just wish you good luck. Germany and Canada come to mind. There is France too if you can speak French.
hrzn 10y ago
I encourage you to consider EPFL or ETH in Switzerland. Both are top-level universities in CS, where Iranians are welcome. The next deadline to apply to EPFL Phd school (EDIC) is in April. I wish you the best!
JohnGB 10y ago
I'm sorry to hear about that, and as unfair as it is, if it's your dream, there are other options worth exploring. If you can get a PhD position at almost any EU university, it is always fully funded (and in fact paid). Many countries (the Netherlands as an example) have almost all CS PhD programs in English, so language wouldn't even be an issue - and there are plenty of Iranian students who are welcomed here.
TurlochOTierney 10y ago
Dublin Ireland (English speaking) has 2 top 200 universities. University College Dublin and Trinity College Dublin (also called University of Dublin). With a student visa you can work in a job 20 hrs a week, 40 hrs in the summer. Funding will be hard enough for PhD, a fair number of people do Masters. USA software companies employ many people in Dublin (for when you finish/get a full work visa). USA software companies are in Dublin for tax reasons. If you (about 5 years if you are lucky) later get Irish citizenship you can work anywhere in the EU (European Union). Dublin does not compete favourably with top US destinations, but competes favourably with USA destinations outside the top 5 softare cities (and other European cities) marginal top rate income tax taxation pretty high, accommodation cost high. Toleration of other nationalities pretty good except for a small 'immigrants stealing our jobs' minority, immigration pretty recent (due to economic boom 1998 to 2008), generally from new in 2004 EU states (Poland, Latvia, Lithuania as no visa now required) and from India for software engineers.
- coredog64 10y ago
  What is your take on Ireland's situation should the UK race you to the bottom on being a location that provides a tax advantage?
misingnoglic 10y ago
I'm so sorry :(
finid 10y ago
You have options, lots of it. Look to Canada and Holland. They have fine programs too.
neotek 10y ago
Come to Australia, we need you!
mabbo 10y ago
As many others have said: come to Canada! We would love to welcome you here.
eternalban 10y ago
As some have mentioned here, you have other options. Iranian-Americans have been making serious, world-class [1][2][3][4], contribution to American society in a variety of fields. America's loss is some other nations' gain. Just a small sample: [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_Javan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_Javan [2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotfi_A._Zadeh https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotfi_A._Zadeh [3]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nima_Arkani-Hamed https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nima_Arkani-Hamed [4]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maryam_Mirzakhani https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maryam_Mirzakhani
- amirmansour 10y ago
  Thanks for those links. I never knew the person behind Fuzzy Sets, a topic highly relevant to the HN crowd. Lotfi Zadeh is one of the giants we stand on.
- gspetr 10y ago
  Foundations for the case you're trying to make are not very persuasive: 3 out of 4 people on this list seem to have moved during a much friendlier Shah's regime, before the 1979 revolution which turned Iran into a theocracy.
  - eternalban 10y ago
    The character of the Iranian people is not based on politics du jour, or even religion for that matter. Our civilization has been around for a few thousands years and it speaks for itself. [p.s.] Here are the words of one of our noted poets. He was a ("scary") Muslim, living in 13th century. This is what he had to say and this is our creed: Adam's sons are the members of the same body Their creation from the same clay Should one organ be troubled by pain Others would suffer severe strain You who are careless of people's suffering Deserve not the name, "human being"! [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saadi_Shirazi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saadi_Shirazi
    - gspetr 10y ago
      You wish to tell me that the character of people is not based on religion in a theocracy, where the ruler is literally called "Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution"? Iran executes over 1000 people every year using very barbaric methods every year: https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2015/07/irans-staggering-execution-spree/ https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2015/07/irans-stagger... It does speak for itself that after thousands of years you ended up in one of the most backwards forms of government possible, though I'm not sure you realize the implications of what it speaks of.
0xFFC 10y ago
Ironically I am in a similar situation too, I am last year bachelor student, I have found a professor and laboratory to work in one of the universities in the United States, and I was going to apply for Fall 2018. Now from what I can see I should forget about the US. And my field was System Software (I am particularly in love with Operating System Security).
artmageddon 10y ago
I know it wont' help, but as a US citizen, please accept my apologies for everything that you're going through due to these circumstances being set up by the new administration here. My wife is also an Iranian CS student and she's been here for the past few years. She's looking to go home to see her family for Nowruz, and we're not even sure if it's a good idea for her to do so, despite her being a greencard holder. I'm hoping for the best for her, for you, and for all of us.
cylinder 10y ago
Please take a look at Australia (lots of Iranian PhDs going to unis in Melbourne; great CS programs in Sydney too), or Canada, where your skills will not only be appreciated but you will have a clear path to permanent residency based on your education and skills. I'm Iranian, but born in the US, work in immigration and can connect you with excellent people (Iranian too) in Australia who can help you walk through all of this. Even if you get into the US for your PhD program, you face a tangled web to actually achieve a green card, and that was before Trump.
amirmansour 10y ago
Sallam throwaway jaan :) Don't let this hold you back or defer your plans. As a former PhD student in the U.S, I can tell you that you have plenty of options in Canada and Europe. Some of my best professors studied in these areas. Moafagh baash!
AlgorithmicTime 10y ago
I recommend revolution against the mullahs.
gumby 10y ago
Don't worry, Australia, Germany and France would love to help you out (and Canada as mentioned). My mother was admitted to a US university in the 1950s but decided to go to Australia instead. (Good for me since I was born!) Also even if you got here, depending on where that uni is located, your problems would either be over or just getting worse. E.g. there are periodic waves of violence against foreign students (Japanese in the 80s/90s; Middle East and Sikhs (??) in 00s and 10s) in certain states. Things do change. When we first came to the US we landed in D.C. and drove north to find a hotel. My parents would not have been allowed to stay in the same hotel in Virgina. But now I live in the States and don't worry about that. I worry about other things but do believe that things will change for the better. This reaction is the last gasp of the old people.
bitslave 10y ago
Seven months? What does this have to do with Trump?

dannylandau 10y ago

This might sound like a crazy idea, but why not try applying to a few Israeli universities: Tel Aviv University, Weizmann Institute, Hebrew University and Technion are considered to pretty top notch for Computer science and have a few Turing award winners. You'd be surprised that Israeli academics tend to be very welcoming of students from all over the world.

digitalengineer 10y ago
That is not without danger, I believe. Having Israeli stamps in your Iranien passport...
- Gustomaximus 10y ago
  Wrong. Israel will stamp a separate piece of paper to leave in your passport during your visit for exactly this reason.
  - notahacker 10y ago
    Having records of a their Israeli degree all over the internet is probably a bigger problem for somebody intending to return to Iran at some point in the near future, even if only just to visit.
  - cylinder 10y ago
    Iranian government has spies everywhere and keeps pretty comprehensive lists of citizens they don't like and will harass them and throw them in prison, or executive them, on a whim when they try to re-enter.
deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
jpatokal 10y ago
Israeli society, however, is increasingly less and less tolerant of non-Jews. For example: http://www.timesofisrael.com/chief-rabbi-non-jews-shouldnt-be-allowed-to-live-in-israel/ http://www.timesofisrael.com/chief-rabbi-non-jews-shouldnt-b... But an even bigger problem is going to be the Iranian government, which is really not keen on Iranians consorting with the Zionist entity. Even if the OP by some miracle managed to pull this off, they would run a very real risk of ending up in prison as a suspected Israeli spy.
- thebiglebrewski 10y ago
  Haha wow. Have you ever even been to Israel? Some of the most welcoming and loving people I've ever met. Sure, I'm Jewish, but I've also seen many average Israelis talk about their love for all and desire for peace. There are extremists in every community.
  - some-guy 10y ago
    My Mexican friend visited with my fiancé (who is Jewish) and was detained, and then subsequently released over 6 times in a two week period without any warning, being questioned "are you Palestinian? Are you Muslim? What are you doing here?" I don't think the point is about the citizens themselves, it's about how they normalize this kind of behavior by their police / government.
    - thebiglebrewski 10y ago
      Unfortunately that's what happens when your state is under constant threat. Yes, the IDF and Israeli security forces do use profiling and I'm not saying I'm a fan. But they are the best in the world. They're very good at extracting information. I don't agree with that kind of behavior either frankly, but it's a wonder the country is as safe as it is under constant threat. It's kind of a no-win situation for them. If they don't do that and are overcautious, they get attacked more. If they do, they get attacked for doing it. I'm sorry for what happened to your Mexican friend and I hope he receives better treatment in the future.

flexie 10y ago

In Europe, there are many excellent universities and many countries with visas for phd students. Just come to Europe. Once your phd is bagged, the US will have another president, and you can go there (unless you like Europe too much by then).

cyberferret 10y ago

I am sympathetic to your plight. Why not do as the article suggests and apply to Australia or Canada for your studies? Not sure of the availability of funded PhD research programmes here (Australia), but it may yield quicker results at the moment.

mnkypete 10y ago

It hurts so much to read stories like this, where politics stands in the way of education, especially when the university already approved. Have you thought about coming to Germany? Not the US, but not bad either.. https://www.daad.de/deutschland/stipendium/en/ https://www.daad.de/deutschland/stipendium/en/

CobrastanJorji 10y ago

On behalf of my fellow Americans, please allow me to offer you our deepest apology. Please know that most of our country doesn't hate or fear you. We will continue to do everything we can to fight this policy and others like it.

saiya-jin 10y ago
of course you don't, political elite never represents common folks out there (that includes supposedly evil places like North Korea, Iran, Iraq etc.). americans are, by my personal experience great people. america's loss, some other place gain (judging from OP description, he won't have big troubles getting someplace else). to OP - don't worry, seeing where US us steadily going after 9/11, without any attempt to even slow down, there are much better places to live, if you value things like true freedom. as somebody coming from Iran, I would presume so...
StavrosK 10y ago
> We will continue to do everything we can to fight this policy and others like it. You say that, but I'm afraid the implication might be "short of doing anything that matters". Where are the protests? Why aren't people in the streets? Don't make the same mistake Germans did under Hitler. The government relies on each step affecting few enough people that nobody will be bothered enough to march, and after a thousand little steps, you have a totalitarian government.
- yummyfajitas 10y ago
  There are fairly large and violent protests against Trump. His supporters are regularly attacked. This has been true ever since he was a serious candidate. http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/riots-break-out-washington-over-9660568 http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/riots-break-out-wash... http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/inauguration-2017/anti-trump-protesters-pepper-sprayed-eve-inauguration-outside-deploraball-d-n709321 http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/inauguration-2017/anti-trum... http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2016/08/hillary-supporters-crash-trump-fundraiser-beat-rob-supporters-entering-mn-convention-center/ http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2016/08/hillary-supporters-c... https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/06/03/ugly-bloody-scenes-in-san-jose-as-protesters-attack-trump-supporters-outside-rally/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/06/0... In addition to violent (and some non-violent) protests, you also have direct action targeting his supporters. People who support Trump, or are mistakenly believed to support him, or just random passerby, are being assaulted (and in some cases, kidnapped or shot). https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/21/us/politics/richard-spencer-punched-attack.html?_r=0 https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/21/us/politics/richard-spenc... https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jan/04/facebook-live-stream-video-man-attacked-chicago-trump https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jan/04/facebook-liv... http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/police-release-man-arrested-in-uw-shooting/ http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/police-releas... Do these things count as "anything that matters"?

huevosabio 10y ago

The situation is deplorable. I would suggest applying to Canada (as others have suggested), Machine Learning seems to be quite strong there. Otherwise, many of the application processes are still open in many European universities (if I recall from my time applying to grad school, ETH deadline as well as other continental universities are due sometime during Spring). Edit: typos

jkimmel 10y ago

I am deeply saddened to read this. I apologize, on behalf of the country. Please know that the majority of people in the US do not support this policy. We want to see you reach your potential. We want to benefit from the talent you would bring. Many of us will be working hard to fix this for the next several years. I'm sorry I couldn't do more to prevent it from happening in the first place.

rtx 10y ago
Why? Everyone should not get a visa. Country should have a right to decide whom they let in. I never heard anyone complaining when the rich got visa more easily than poor.
- macintux 10y ago
  Countries should vet who they let in. They shouldn't blanket ban a country because of its leaders' policies, or else pretty soon US citizens won't be able to travel anywhere due to global disgust with Trump's bozocity.
- mikeash 10y ago
  I've heard lots of complaining about the ability of the rich to effectively buy visas. As for why? Because this blanket ban is not useful, it violates the spirit of religious freedom, and it's going to cause a lot of real harm both to people who want to come here, and to our own country due to excluding people who will make us better.
gspetr 10y ago
> Please know that the majority of people in the US do not support this policy. This seems to be false: http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-taps-americans-wariness-about-immigration-ap-poll-n476831 http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-taps-americans-war... In the poll, 54 percent of Americans, including about three-quarters of Republicans, about half of independents and over a third of Democrats, said the United States takes in too many immigrants from the Middle East. http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/current_events/immigration/december_2015/voters_like_trump_s_proposed_muslim_ban http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/curr... Among all voters, 46% favor a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States, while 40% are opposed. Fourteen percent (14%) are undecided.

orbifold 10y ago

Try to come to Germany, lots of Iranian expats study and work here. There are a few very good CS programs aswell (TU Munich for example). Most Phd positions come with a salary of ~1700-3400€ a month and there are no significant tuition fees. You might need to do a two year master degree first though, those are usually not funded, but there are no tuition fees either. Courses on the Phd and Masters level are taught in English.

donquichotte 10y ago
Same in Switzerland. Check out ETHZ or EPFL.
shams93 10y ago
Google even has a location in Germany so if you were planning on getting a PHD in the US and then moving into working for Google most likely you could take the same kind of path in Germany but without the tremendous education debt.
adrianN 10y ago
Here is a fully funded program: http://gradschool.cs.uni-saarland.de/ http://gradschool.cs.uni-saarland.de/ You get 800€ during your master and about twice that during your PhD. The institute is really good and there are two Max Planck Institutes (Informatics and Software Systems) right on campus. The program is entirely in English.

zouhair 10y ago

Try to create a group of people in a predicament like yours and start contacting Universities in Canada and talk to them about what can they do for you.

perfmode 10y ago

Universities ought to offer deferred admission to international admits from countries on the list. We ought to demand it.

sangnoir 10y ago
Deferred until when, exactly? A year? 4 years? 8? It is unfair to expect the students to put their lives on hold indefinitely. I say they should pursue their education in places that welcome them like Canada or Germany.
- perfmode 10y ago
  A year would be a start

throwaway99oi9 10y ago

I'm an immigrant too - I've been here 9 years, but now I'm getting out. Canada, Australia and New Zealand are viable options for me, and I've already been invited by 2 of these countries. Don't be disheartened. You're smart (you got a fully funded PhD), and the world is very big, with many opportunities. Good luck!

mmrezaie 10y ago
I want to second this. I also had a Ph.D. full fund in the USA but I went to Sweden, and why? Well in that time I had an opportunity to work and fund an start up and boy I am so lucky to find my supervisor in Sweden (over a simple phone call). Compared to the USA, universities in Sweden, offer far more support to for patents and starting your startups. You essentially get all the support and university won't own your work. You may think what happened to you is bad (and it is) but sometimes it turns to a new and better opportunity.
mabbo 10y ago
Come check Toronto. Very immigrant-rich city, very welcoming and very multicultural. The winters sometimes suck, but I find that brings us all together because nobody likes -10C.

nerfhammer 10y ago

My deepest apologies to you for the mindless horror that has taken hold of this country. Best of luck, brother.

NicoJuicy 10y ago

Europe still has some of the best universities and allowance programs :)

tiatia 10y ago
Well, Europe has Oxford and Cambridge and?
- matt4077 10y ago
  Continental Europe tends towards having many "good" institutions at the expense of not having the extreme stand-outs like Stanford, MIT, or Harvard. There are also departments within universities which are excellent and well-known in their fields without being as well-known by the general public, as well as research institutes separate from universities, like the Max-Planck societies or EMBL. Overall, I'd say the model makes it harder for something like Google to be created in Europe, but it makes it easier to get an education that will get you a job at Google.
- iainmerrick 10y ago
  The UK alone also has places like Imperial College, UCL, Warwick and Manchester, with top-notch CS departments. In Scotland alone there's Glasgow (birthplace of the Glasgow Haskell Compiler) and Edinburgh (birthplace of Prolog). As another commenter noted, mainland Europe tends to spread their academic resources rather than focusing on a few prestige sites like Oxford and Cambridge, but there are many fantastic CS departments. I don't know the current hot areas, but when I was a researcher in the early 2000s, there was lots of Haskell activity in Chalmers and TU Berlin.

VickBear 10y ago

I would bet you will still be able to attend soon. If you read the draft of the executive order you'd see that it is a temporary ban until they can start the improved vetting process. Your hopes should be way higher!

tempestn 10y ago

I can personally recommend the University of Waterloo, here in Canada. I did my Master's degree there in electrical engineering. The school has an excellent, and well recognized, CS program, and a significant percentage of both the graduate student body and the faculty (at least when I was there 8 years ago or so) were from Iran. Waterloo itself isn't a particularly large city, but with two universities it has a significant student population, and it's not far from Toronto for anytime you're interested in more of a big city cultural experience. Of course there are a number of excellent universities here in Canada; if Waterloo isn't to your liking, maybe check out UBC here on the west coast. I really hope, as Scott suggests in the post, that a silver lining to this situation is that we have an opportunity to welcome more people like you into Canada. Edit: I could even put you in touch with my old supervising professor (who's also from Iran) if you like; he's in the Engineering faculty as opposed to CS, but I'm sure he would know who to refer you to.

RRRA 10y ago
^ This! Or if you are into AI, university of Montreal is also a hot bed right now with Mr Bengio. Canadians will gladly take you, in fact I know an Iranian who just finished his math phd... Courage! :)
- graeham 10y ago
  And U of Toronto has one of the top Neural Networks groups anywhere. UBC is also a great university in a nice city.
it_learnses 10y ago
yeah Waterloo has a great program. I've known a few Iranian students who were disappointed by University of Victoria and then went to Waterloo.

tallanvor 10y ago

I can't say much more than I'm sorry. Remember: Donald Trump does not represent the will of the American people. He won the electoral college, but around 2.8 million more people voted for Clinton than voted for him. He does not represent our values, our morals, or our view of where the country should be going. He represents those straight white males who don't want to adapt to the future, who don't want to give up their power, and who don't recognize that America can only be successful when we help the world be successful. I'll be honest, I think Trump is going to cost universities, labs, and businesses a lot of very smart people. I hope we'll be able to recover from the damage he's going to do, but I honestly don't know just how bad it will get.

adventured 10y ago
Trump very clearly represents the will of an immense number of people and may represent the will of the majority of Americans in fact. For both Clinton and Trump that representation is far beyond those that actually voted. Clinton's camp will be the first to tell you that supposedly a lot of her supporters didn't vote in the election. You say Trump represents straight white males (you imply that's all he represents). Trump won the vote of 53% of white women. Trump won the popular vote in 30 of the 50 states. The popular vote in just two states - NY & CA, neither of which Trump could have ever competed in - determined that popular vote gap. The facts don't support your premise at all.
- panic 10y ago
  The only relevant fact here is that millions more people voted against Trump than for him. The top reason people voted for Trump wasn't to support him or his policies, it was that he wasn't Clinton (http://www.people-press.org/2016/09/21/in-their-own-words-why-voters-support-and-have-concerns-about-clinton-and-trump/ http://www.people-press.org/2016/09/21/in-their-own-words-wh...). His approval rating is below 50% (http://www.gallup.com/poll/201617/gallup-daily-trump-job-approval.aspx http://www.gallup.com/poll/201617/gallup-daily-trump-job-app...). Trump doesn't represent the majority in any sense of the word.
  - 10y ago

gajomi 10y ago

A quick word of advice... I have seen firsthand people in similar logistical situations in the middle of the PhD (though not quite precipitated from such dire geopolitical circumstances). If your admission was based on a recommendation of a faculty at the same institute get in contact with them as they may have contacts in others countries looking for similar students. If they are senior faculty they may even have dual appointments at institutes outside of the US. If there are no leads on those fronts, I suppose I can just wish you good luck. Germany and Canada come to mind. There is France too if you can speak French.

hrzn 10y ago

I encourage you to consider EPFL or ETH in Switzerland. Both are top-level universities in CS, where Iranians are welcome. The next deadline to apply to EPFL Phd school (EDIC) is in April. I wish you the best!

JohnGB 10y ago

I'm sorry to hear about that, and as unfair as it is, if it's your dream, there are other options worth exploring. If you can get a PhD position at almost any EU university, it is always fully funded (and in fact paid). Many countries (the Netherlands as an example) have almost all CS PhD programs in English, so language wouldn't even be an issue - and there are plenty of Iranian students who are welcomed here.

TurlochOTierney 10y ago

Dublin Ireland (English speaking) has 2 top 200 universities. University College Dublin and Trinity College Dublin (also called University of Dublin). With a student visa you can work in a job 20 hrs a week, 40 hrs in the summer. Funding will be hard enough for PhD, a fair number of people do Masters. USA software companies employ many people in Dublin (for when you finish/get a full work visa). USA software companies are in Dublin for tax reasons. If you (about 5 years if you are lucky) later get Irish citizenship you can work anywhere in the EU (European Union). Dublin does not compete favourably with top US destinations, but competes favourably with USA destinations outside the top 5 softare cities (and other European cities) marginal top rate income tax taxation pretty high, accommodation cost high. Toleration of other nationalities pretty good except for a small 'immigrants stealing our jobs' minority, immigration pretty recent (due to economic boom 1998 to 2008), generally from new in 2004 EU states (Poland, Latvia, Lithuania as no visa now required) and from India for software engineers.

coredog64 10y ago
What is your take on Ireland's situation should the UK race you to the bottom on being a location that provides a tax advantage?

misingnoglic 10y ago

I'm so sorry :(

finid 10y ago

You have options, lots of it. Look to Canada and Holland. They have fine programs too.

neotek 10y ago

Come to Australia, we need you!

mabbo 10y ago

As many others have said: come to Canada! We would love to welcome you here.

eternalban 10y ago

As some have mentioned here, you have other options. Iranian-Americans have been making serious, world-class [1][2][3][4], contribution to American society in a variety of fields. America's loss is some other nations' gain. Just a small sample: [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_Javan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_Javan [2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotfi_A._Zadeh https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotfi_A._Zadeh [3]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nima_Arkani-Hamed https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nima_Arkani-Hamed [4]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maryam_Mirzakhani https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maryam_Mirzakhani

amirmansour 10y ago
Thanks for those links. I never knew the person behind Fuzzy Sets, a topic highly relevant to the HN crowd. Lotfi Zadeh is one of the giants we stand on.
gspetr 10y ago
Foundations for the case you're trying to make are not very persuasive: 3 out of 4 people on this list seem to have moved during a much friendlier Shah's regime, before the 1979 revolution which turned Iran into a theocracy.
- eternalban 10y ago
  The character of the Iranian people is not based on politics du jour, or even religion for that matter. Our civilization has been around for a few thousands years and it speaks for itself. [p.s.] Here are the words of one of our noted poets. He was a ("scary") Muslim, living in 13th century. This is what he had to say and this is our creed: Adam's sons are the members of the same body Their creation from the same clay Should one organ be troubled by pain Others would suffer severe strain You who are careless of people's suffering Deserve not the name, "human being"! [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saadi_Shirazi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saadi_Shirazi
  - gspetr 10y ago
    You wish to tell me that the character of people is not based on religion in a theocracy, where the ruler is literally called "Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution"? Iran executes over 1000 people every year using very barbaric methods every year: https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2015/07/irans-staggering-execution-spree/ https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2015/07/irans-stagger... It does speak for itself that after thousands of years you ended up in one of the most backwards forms of government possible, though I'm not sure you realize the implications of what it speaks of.

0xFFC 10y ago

Ironically I am in a similar situation too, I am last year bachelor student, I have found a professor and laboratory to work in one of the universities in the United States, and I was going to apply for Fall 2018. Now from what I can see I should forget about the US. And my field was System Software (I am particularly in love with Operating System Security).

artmageddon 10y ago

I know it wont' help, but as a US citizen, please accept my apologies for everything that you're going through due to these circumstances being set up by the new administration here. My wife is also an Iranian CS student and she's been here for the past few years. She's looking to go home to see her family for Nowruz, and we're not even sure if it's a good idea for her to do so, despite her being a greencard holder. I'm hoping for the best for her, for you, and for all of us.

cylinder 10y ago

Please take a look at Australia (lots of Iranian PhDs going to unis in Melbourne; great CS programs in Sydney too), or Canada, where your skills will not only be appreciated but you will have a clear path to permanent residency based on your education and skills. I'm Iranian, but born in the US, work in immigration and can connect you with excellent people (Iranian too) in Australia who can help you walk through all of this. Even if you get into the US for your PhD program, you face a tangled web to actually achieve a green card, and that was before Trump.

amirmansour 10y ago

Sallam throwaway jaan :) Don't let this hold you back or defer your plans. As a former PhD student in the U.S, I can tell you that you have plenty of options in Canada and Europe. Some of my best professors studied in these areas. Moafagh baash!

AlgorithmicTime 10y ago

I recommend revolution against the mullahs.

gumby 10y ago

Don't worry, Australia, Germany and France would love to help you out (and Canada as mentioned). My mother was admitted to a US university in the 1950s but decided to go to Australia instead. (Good for me since I was born!) Also even if you got here, depending on where that uni is located, your problems would either be over or just getting worse. E.g. there are periodic waves of violence against foreign students (Japanese in the 80s/90s; Middle East and Sikhs (??) in 00s and 10s) in certain states. Things do change. When we first came to the US we landed in D.C. and drove north to find a hotel. My parents would not have been allowed to stay in the same hotel in Virgina. But now I live in the States and don't worry about that. I worry about other things but do believe that things will change for the better. This reaction is the last gasp of the old people.

bitslave 10y ago

Seven months? What does this have to do with Trump?