UMass Abandons Ban on Iranian Students

The University of Massachusetts at Amherst is backtracking less than two weeks after announcing a controversial policy barring Iranian nationals from some science and engineering programs, including physics, chemistry, and chemical engineering. After consulting with the State Department, the school says it will now create "individualized study plans to meet the requirements of federal sanctions law and address the impact on students," USA Today reports. The initial policy, revealed Feb. 6, was in response to a 2012 law and "conflicts with our institutional values and principles," UMass says in a statement, per NBC News. "It is now clear, after further consultation and deliberation, that we can adopt a less restrictive policy." (More University of Massachusetts stories.)