evidence: In the 2018-2019 school year, foreign enrollment peaked at 1.1 million students and it's been declining ever since as countries like Australia, Canada and the U.K gain more foreign students. [...] Higher education is one the America's largest service exports When the pandemic sliced away a huge chunk of foreign students, the new administration took note. Higher education is one the nation's largest service exports — bigger than agriculture exports like corn and soybeans.