Illinois Tech students are heading into the fall semester with professors gone, classes reportedly canceled and academic plans suddenly unsettled after the Chicago university cut approximately 160 faculty and staff members. With classes set to begin in less than two weeks, the layoffs are raising especially serious questions for graduate students whose research, advising and immigration status can depend on one professor or department.
The university confirmed the workforce reductions after President Raj Echambadi warned the campus community about financial pressure. ABC7 Chicago reported that Illinois Tech cited demographic decline, research cutbacks and severe restrictions on international students as reasons for the layoffs.
Students Say Advisers And Research Projects Are Disappearing
Illinois Tech’s main campus is in Bronzeville, and the university also operates a downtown law center. WBEZ Chicago reported that the university did not disclose how the cuts were divided among departments, while saying affected employees would receive severance.
Students told ABC7 Chicago that the impact is already showing up in billing and course schedules. Ming Xin said an adviser will not return next semester and that some students received charges for classes they said had been canceled, while a doctoral student said losing his professor could disrupt a nearly completed research project, publication plans and student visa status.
International Enrollment Was Already A Financial Pressure Point
The layoffs did not come out of nowhere financially. In a financing FAQ posted by Illinois Tech, the university projected a $6 million operating deficit after depreciation for fiscal 2026 and said visa delays were contributing to weaker-than-expected graduate revenue.
The same university document said international students accounted for 74% of net graduate tuition revenue in fiscal 2025, a figure that helps explain why restrictions affecting foreign enrollment could hit Illinois Tech particularly hard. WBEZ also reported that more than 40% of the university’s students came from outside the United States in fall 2025 and that international graduate enrollment fell by roughly 1,200 students between fall 2024 and fall 2025.
Layoffs Follow Months Of Restructuring Talk
Students and employees had been hearing about structural changes before the latest cuts. Illinois Tech’s student newspaper, TechNews, reported in April that administrators were considering consolidating seven colleges into three, with possible effects on class sizes, academic departments and staff positions.
The university’s faculty senate then voted no confidence in Echambadi and the provost, according to WBEZ Chicago. Faculty members said they were not confident senior administrators could manage the financial transition transparently, while employees told the outlet that students were worried about getting the courses they need and about the university’s long-term stability.
For students returning to the Bronzeville campus, the immediate question is less about the university’s long-term restructuring plan than whether their schedules, advisers and research commitments will still be intact when classes begin. Illinois Tech has said the reductions are intended to protect its financial stability and educational mission, but students are now waiting for specifics about who will teach, which courses remain available and how disrupted degree paths will be repaired.
