Will the United States ever have a national policy on Internationalization? It appears the benefits of such a policy would benefit citizens and employers in the United States to a great extent where all would benefit from becoming more globally aware. Employers want more globally educated people and students seem to want to be more global, but many students lack the finances to make that dream a reality. If there is a need in our economy, and a want in our students, then why is more not being done to bring this dimension of education to a reality? The reading this week clearly states that the desire to get internationalization off the ground in a more profound way is important for many and would benefit many. So what are the road blocks and how do we overcome them? Will we ever be able to overcome them? The answer does not seem to be an easy one. Many initiatives need funding and that in itself is as complicated as the higher education system in the United States is. This is not a negative remark, but rather a compliment to the US Higher Ed system, because it shows that it is not controlled by the government. With that said, initiatives still need funding in order to be successful. A simple solution would appear to be to have a collaboration between government and institutions as well as businesses to produce this funding in a way that all would benefit, which usually comes in the forms of tax cuts. If the government wants the businesses to pay, tax cuts may work, but if the businesses want the institutions to pay, tax cuts may not work. And if the institutions want the government to pay, then taxes will go up for someone.
Another side to the U.S.” in bound” internationalization is the issue with visa’s and job placements for international students studying here. If the idea of internationalization is to find the best of the best worldwide and educate them here, it would make sense that we would want to employ them here or somewhere within American companies. But it seems that many students are unable to stay in the U.S. and that the competition and price for American companies to try and sponsor our scholars is a difficult one. So where is the benefit of internationalization within our own borders if it is not benefiting our own economy? It is coming clear to me, why the U.S. does not have internationalization as a priority.