EducationUSA Interactive: Community Colleges (2024)

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MR. ALFRED BOLL: Good morning, and good evening to our viewers joining us from around the world. My name is Alfred Boll, and I represent EducationUSA
and the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State in Washington DC.
Today’s Facebook Live is about community colleges and why international students should consider community
colleges as an attractive option when looking to study in the United States. Our goal at EducationUSA is to help international students
identify the American college or university where they are best placed for success, and community colleges
are an excellent option for many students. There are over 550 EducationUSA advisors
in 181 countries and territories around the world offering free advising services to help you identify a school
and to help you navigate the admissions process. There are over 4,700 accredited U.S. colleges and universities,
and EducationUSA promotes all of them. I’m excited to introduce our guest speakers
who have a wealth of knowledge on community colleges and who can tell us about what is known as the two plus two
model. Joining us virtually is Dawn Wood. Dawn is the dean of international programs
at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She has over 20 years of experience
in international education. Welcome, Dawn. MS. DAWN WOOD: Thank you. MR. BOLL: Welcome. Thank you.
Joining me here in our studio is Wayne Wheeler. Wayne represents the U.S. community college sector
through his work at the American Association of Community Colleges. As the director of AACC’s international office,
he develops initiatives that help advocate for community colleges. Welcome, Wayne. MR. WAYNE WHEELER: Thank you.
MR. BOLL: Also joining me here is Edward Tatchim. Edward is an international student from Cameroon.
He just graduated from Prince George’s Community College in Maryland with an associate’s degree in computer science.
In the fall, he will attend the University of Maryland, College Park to pursue a bachelor’s degree in computer
science. Welcome, Edward. MR. EDWARD TATCHIM: Thank you. MR. BOLL: During the program, we will be answering questions live from all of you on Facebook.
So if you have questions you would like to ask any of our speakers, please post them
at any time during this program in the comments section below. Wayne, I wonder if you could start our discussion
by giving us an overview of community colleges. There are over 1,000 community colleges in the United States.
How are they different from traditional universities? MR. WHEELER: Well, community colleges were established over 100 years ago
to bring higher education into the local community to educate as many citizens as possible.
Today, about half of all undergraduates in the U.S. are enrolled at community colleges.
MR. BOLL: That’s incredible. MR. WHEELER: They provide great opportunities, not only for international students, but also domestic students.
Actually, the largest percentage of international students who come to the U.S. in pursuit of an undergraduate education
are enrolled at community colleges. Last year, it was a little more than 94,000
international students. MR. BOLL: Wow. That’s incredible. So why would a student choose a community college?
MR. WHEELER: There are many community colleges spread across the United States, but they have a common mission.
And one important part of that is that they provide the first two years of a university education.
And they provide that at a very affordable cost; much lower than they would have to pay at a four year

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