US News yesterday ranked Lynn University number 4 in USA for percentage of international students attending with 17 percent of its student body coming from other nations. By the numbers, Lynn University students come from 87 countries (and 44 states in the US). This also means Lynn is number one for international students among schools who appear in the publication’s listing of “Regional Universities” in the South—this was the list Lynn appeared in for the 2011 rankings. We’re in some very good company here with schools in this ranking including Purdue, Columbia University, Carnie Mellon, Northeastern and Princeton.

Now, as a student or parent…why is this important? The reason this international focus on campus is so important came through loud and clear to me this week when I sat in Professor John Cipolla’s Managing Organizations class. John was leading an outstanding discussion about the intersection of management decisions and ethics. What made that discussion so rich was that students from North America, South America, India and beyond all were able to bring their own unique perspectives to the conversation…so rather than it just being a discussion from the US perspective, we were able to hear directly from students who have grown up and lived elsewhere. This diverse student population will provide our graduate with a distinct advantage as they will see their jobs and responsibilities from a truly global perspective.