AMHERST — In preparation for a change in presidential administrations at the federal level, international students, faculty and staff on University of Massachusetts immigration sponsorships, who may be traveling abroad during winter break, are being encouraged to return to the United States before Jan. 20.

Following the recent presidential election in which voters are returning Donald Trump to the White House, the UMass Office of Global Affairs has issued an advisory to the international community that those leaving the United States for the holidays should “strongly consider” returning stateside before Inauguration Day, though this is not a requirement or mandate, and is also not based on any U.S. government policy or recommendation.

“However, given that a new presidential administration can enact new policies on their first day in office, and based on previous experience with travel bans that were enacted in the first Trump Administration in 2016, the Office of Global Affairs is making this advisory out of an abundance of caution to hopefully prevent any possible travel disruption to members of our international community,” the statement reads.

Eight years ago, shortly after Trump’s Jan. 20, 2017 inauguration, an executive order titled “Protecting the Nation from Terrorist Attacks by Foreign Nationals” was issued, suspending immigration and visits for 90 days from predominantly Muslim countries, including Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. That order, accompanied by an executive order freezing refugee resettlement and travel to the United States, caused chaos at airports across the country, including for some permanent residents, dual citizens and those with green cards.

Some scholars at the Five Colleges were stranded during this period, unable to immediately return to campus due to confusion over the order and how it was being enforced.

Trump’s recent campaign against Vice President Kamala Harris focused on securing the border and deporting undocumented immigrants. In the days since the election, Tom Homan, former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement who will serve as Trump’s “border czar,” has advised people to self-deport if they have not entered the country legally.

UMass has more than 1,600 international undergraduate students, more than 3,800 international graduate students and more than 150 international scholars and staff, all told representing 120 countries.

At UMass, the spring semester’s first day of classes is Jan. 30.

“We are not able to speculate on what a travel ban will look like if enacted, nor can we speculate on what particular countries or regions of the world may or may not be affected,” the UMass statement reads.

The university is also allowing undergraduate international students who live on campus to move back in early, if needed.

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.