“Even though you tried so hard, and outworked so many people to get here, still at the end, you’re not good enough and they don’t want you,” he said.

Because Mr. Obama initiated the program by executive action, Mr. Trump could still revoke it with the stroke of a pen. It does not need congressional approval.

Without the right to work legally in the United States, the Dreamers could see the accouterments of middle-class life — a studio apartment in Brooklyn, a driver’s license, a biweekly paycheck with deductions for retirement, a coveted desk in a financial firm — disappear.

Some viewed Mr. Trump’s latest comments as polarizing, continuing a narrative from his campaign.

“We don’t want to differentiate between the good immigrants and the bad immigrants – however he chooses to qualify them,” said Hina Naveed, 26, a registered nurse on Staten Island and a co-director of the activist group, Dream Action Coalition. “Instead of just working it out with the Dreamers, what I’d rather see is some clear policy in what he’s hoping to work out with immigrants in general.”

Otherwise, she said, the alternative is frightening: “We’ll save DACA and all their parents will be deported — who will want to stay here?”

Mr. Latchman said that even before Mr. Trump was elected, his manager suggested exploring other offices around the world, like the one in Toronto. His work permit expires in the summer of 2018, about the time his three-year contract with the bank ends.