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The world was not the same a decade ago. There is a continuous shift in the challenges both political and economic and realities facing national security. In order to keep up with the ever increasing demands of a challenging society, it is vital to equip students with a competency to deal with the ever changing conditions.

This is however easier said than done. International educators in the United States face numerous challenges with respect to appointing suitable faculty, rethink on how to effectively teach foreign languages in the campus, integrating the international students effectively, financing overseas studies, etc.  Students who are not competent enough to handle global challenges will not possess enough skills in addressing and handling security needs of the nation. They will also be unable to compete in the world market.

All these issues have to be addressed on an urgent basis and students have to be suitably equipped in order to be successful.

Graduating students must also be able to adapt effectively to diverse cultures, fine tune their approaches and perceptions, be familiar with major global changes and related issues and must be aware enough to adapt and communicate effectively across linguistic and cultural boundaries. 

Reports on polls conducted in this regard are not quite promising enough. According to a poll conducted by the National Geographic in the year 2002, only about 25% or less Americans were even aware of the countries that had nuclear weapons.

Enrolment in foreign languages courses fell from 16% in 1960 to less than 9% now. Also, the number of students learning critical languages such as Arabic, Russian and Chinese were far below expected levels as compared to languages such as German, Italian, French and Spanish.

It is in the interest of the students to change the curriculum and redesign it in such a manner that more number of students is well equipped with knowledge of important global languages. It is vital incorporating diverse courses offering minors, certificates or degrees in International studies.

There has to be a significant change in the manner International and areas studies are handled. These programs do not believe in theorizing and tend to be very descriptive. There is no careful planning in the curriculum where students are allowed to select on a random basis and they are usually at a loss towards the end piecing together what they have learnt into a coherent whole. There is also no effort from area studies to use their rich findings to generalize making use of the opportunity.

There is no leaning towards appreciating regional or local cultural values and contexts. The student who comes out of programs does not possess a streamlined knowledge with a crisp and concise idea of different cultures, languages and political and social situations around the globe. Giving attention to the curriculum with an aim to equip students who walk into the world to know where they are going should be the immediate aim of higher education.