One aim of community colleges in developing themselves as international community colleges is that they realize their students will live in a diverse society. So, they seek to embrace students from the wider world. This will expose their students to multiple cultures and help them interact personally and professionally with people from other cultures. The world of business is becoming more international, too, and this exposure will help their students engage in business activities worldwide.
Community colleges are adopting a variety of ways to make students' learning experience more international. This includes making their curriculum more international, providing special programs and activities for international students, introducing study abroad programs, and going in for faculty exchange programs. Most of them are also trying to enroll more international students. A survey by the American Association of Community Colleges found that more than 80 percent of the responding colleges had incorporated international components into their coursework.
Green River Community College in Auburn, Washington, is touting its proximity to Seattle in order to attract international students. The community college offers e-brochures in 10 languages, including Mandarin, Dutch, Japanese and Korean. The college has an international programs staff to provide assistance to international students on aspects such as admission, housing and campus activities. The staff also provides orientations to new students to make them feel comfortable on campus. The college's marketing staff attends fairs worldwide to make presentations to attract international students.
Scottsdale Community College in Scottsdale, Arizona, is also stepping up its efforts to attract international students and become more of an international community college. The college welcomes international students by providing them an orientation to life in the United States, and on campus. Foreign students can polish their English skills through Scottsdale's English as a Second Language (ESL) program. Scottsdale also offers its students the chance to learn a foreign language such as Chinese, Spanish or French.