Students from around the world have found a second home here at CMU. Why? Our tight-knit community hosts student organizations, cultural celebrations and support services to help you meet new people, foster connection and thrive.
Number of international students: 1,726
Total number of CMU students: 14,426
Number of countries students call home: 62
Student organizations
There are 300 student organizations and clubs at CMU for you to get involved in. You’ll find sports organizations, volunteer opportunities, groups for academic areas of study and so much more.
There are also specific organizations for international students and those interested in different cultures. These groups include:
- International Student Organization
- Indian Student Association
- African Student Association
- Asian Cultural Organization
- Chinese Students and Scholars Association
- Empowered Latino Union
- Bangladeshi Student Association
- Saudi Student Club
Each group hosts their own events like trivia nights, food tastings and cultural celebrations to educate and foster community.
VIEW ALL STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS
Cultural celebrations
Each year, dozens of cultural celebrations are hosted on campus including; Hispanic Heritage Month, Arab American Heritage Month, discussion panels, fashion and art displays and more. These events offer opportunities for students to engage with individuals from various cultures through food, music, activities and celebrations.
Support services
As an international student, you’ll have a unique set of opportunities. We’re here to help you make the most of them.
Our International Students and Scholars team provides a range of services including visa and immigration assistance, orientation programs, support for navigating health insurance and more.
In addition to resources tailored specifically for international students, you will also have access to campus-wide resources including:
- Tutoring services: Free one-to-one tutoring in various subjects from other CMU students.
- Career Development Center: Get support crafting your résumé, practice interview skills or view one of the 2,200 unique employers posting job and internship opportunities for CMU students and graduates.
- Writing Center: Support through every step of the writing process, from brainstorming to proofing and final edits.
- Student Food Pantry: Open to all CMU students, the Student Food Pantry offers free food, hygiene and cleaning items to help combat food insecurity.
- Free and confidential mental health support: The Counseling Center is staffed by licensed mental health professionals and graduate level trainees.
- Helpdesk (Information Technology): Technology support on university owned or your own devices including help setting up your Global ID, connecting to Wi-Fi and accessing instructor course materials.
Cultivating connection through differences
![Members of the DEI Mentorship program in the CBA](/images/default-source/colleges/business/cba-news/final-dinner-feature.jpg?Status=Master&sfvrsn=fdbf51f9_10)
Navigating college as an incoming student is an exciting, yet intimidating, journey. As a first-generation student, a student with a visible or invisible disability, a minoritized individual or someone who identifies with other marginalized groups, the experience can often be much more difficult.
Housed within Central Michigan University’s College of Business Administration, and open to all first-year students across campus, the DEI Mentorship Program pairs upperclassmen with incoming freshman to provide these students with guidance, support and simply a friendly face, with the aim of improving student success and retention.
As a freshman, alum Jenna Mueller, ’23, attended different events to learn how to get involved and meet others, but couldn’t find the connection she was looking for.
“As a new student to campus, I struggled to find my place,” Mueller said. “In reflecting on what I could have used when I was a freshman, this program became an opportunity to create something where everyone could come together and feel a part of a bigger group.”
Mueller, then a junior studying human resources management, was tapped by CBA Associate Dean Misty Bennett to bring the DEI Mentorship Program to life at the start of the 2022-23 academic year.
She started by leaning on her own network of peers to serve as mentors. Then, she focused on recruiting freshman to create mentor/mentee pairs. From coordinating with on-campus representatives to speak at the program’s events to hosting a DEI Mentorship Program dinner and laying the parameters for the mentor/mentee relationship — twice-per-month meet-ups — Mueller worked diligently to start the program from scratch.
Five student pairs were part of the first cohort.
Alum Paige Ciuzicki, ’24, was a senior studying marketing and information systems when she became a mentor.
“I was so nervous because I really wanted my mentee to like me, and also because I wanted her to feel like I was someone who could help her,” Ciuzicki said. “I put myself in her shoes and approached the relationship with what I felt I needed when I was in her position.”
Ciuzicki and her mentee talked about goals and internships, and built their relationship over regular get-togethers.
While the goal of the program is to help budding students find their footing, it gives back to the mentors in many ways, too.
“It was so much fun,” Ciuzicki said. “The sense of accountability and leadership I felt and the ability to just help someone else was such a learning and growth opportunity for me.”
In the program’s second year, it saw double the number of participants. It also saw a leadership change. When Mueller graduated in December 2023, Ciuzicki took over the program coordinator position.
For Bennett, the evolution of the program and its impact on those involved has been most rewarding.
“The program has been incredible so far for everyone involved,” she said. “What’s fascinating is how many mentees finish the program and then want to be a mentor. The person they connected with was such a valuable relationship for them and gave them a tremendous sense of community — when they come out on the other side of that experience they want to give it back to others. For us in CBA, we want every student to feel welcome, and the sense of community this program has built is powerful.”
As the program approaches its third year, the hope of its first coordinators, Mueller and Ciuzicki, is that it continues to grow, yes, but also that it always remains a place focused on community.
“If you’re new to CMU, this is a great place to start,” Mueller said. “You have someone right away who wants to get to know you, and your part of a group of people who are all here to make friends and support each other.”
For more information about the DEI Mentorship Program or to enroll as a mentor or mentee, email Associate Dean Misty Bennett at misty.bennett@cmich.edu.