The concepts used to describe language programs are neither neutral nor unambiguous. “Internationalization” is one such a multi-significant term, even if generally denoting academic mobility, diversity in academic programs and a global dimension integrated in the curriculum, especially in higher education. This chapter analyzes and deconstructs the different semantic and ideological charges associated with the adjective “international” in two different language programs in Germany: “Internationale Vorbereitungsklassen” (roughly: “international preparatory classes”) and “Internationale Schulen” (“international schools”). The first case refers to specific classes for newly arrived students who are learning German before joining the regular classes and curriculum; the second case refers to schools, usually bilingual, combining German with another prestigious European language in the curriculum. The empirical study will be based on an analysis of websites reporting on the two programs above. Through discourse analysis, I will highlight the different ideological charges and meanings constructed around the same adjective, showing that “international” can be opaque, imply contradictions and simultaneously refer to openness to the outside world or acculturation to local linguistic norms. This study enriches our understanding of how students are constructed in different language programs and the challenges those students might face as plurilingual individuals.