By Sam Tabahriti, Charlotte Van Campenhout and Anna Dittrich LONDON/AMSTERDAM/HEMHOFEN, Germany (Reuters) -Thousands of foreign students at Harvard University were stuck in administrative limbo and looking for alternatives on Friday after U.

A judge has ordered a temporary restraining order blocking the Administration from revoking Harvard's certification.

Harvard and the federal government are locked in a battle that boils down to turning over records on international students. But Harvard says it is also about the First Amendment.

The latest criticism from the Trump administration of Harvard University highlighted the number of international students entering the United States each year for higher education.

The university has more than 20,000 international students enrolled at its campuses worldwide and they comprise 16 percent of the undergraduate student body.

U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs agreed to grant Harvard's request for immediate relief and set a hearing for May 29, during which she will consider whether to issue a preliminary injunction in the case. Her order blocks the Trump administration from revoking Harvard's certification in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program.

Harvard University's links to China, long an asset to the school, have become a liability as the Trump administration levels accusations that its campus is plagued by Beijing-backed influence operations.

Harvard's international students, including many from India, are in limbo after Trump revoked the university's ability to enroll them.