US President Donald Trump is expected to sign an order requiring universities to hand over admissions data to prove that they are not engaged in affirmative action efforts, the White House press secretary said in a post on X on Thursday.

In her post on X, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt did not give details on the order, such as the ramifications universities will face if they do not cooperate.

Since taking office for his second term, Trump’s administration has attempted to dismantle affirmative action policies at universities, launching dozens of investigations and threatening to cut off funding to schools that promote diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

Trump has particularly taken aim at Harvard University since he took office, calling the institution a “joke” that teaches “hate and stupidity” and going as far as to freeze their government funding.

In May, Trump’s administration revoked Harvard’s right to enrol foreign students — more than a quarter of its annual enrollment.

Though the move was blocked by a judge, the US president stood by his decision.

“Why isn’t Harvard saying that almost 31 [per cent] of their students are from foreign lands, and yet those countries, some not at all friendly to the United States, pay nothing toward their student’s education, nor do they ever intend to,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.

“We want to know who those foreign students are, a reasonable request since we give Harvard billions of dollars, but Harvard isn’t exactly forthcoming.”