This paper uses the international education sector in Australia as a case study to argue against understanding globalization as an exogenous force. It introduces the notion of globalization as a governmentality and discusses alternative interpretations which take into account notions of subjectivity, positionality and space/time. The paper examines the types of global imaginaries used to govern international education. A discourse of cultural hybridity is mobilized to construct Australia as a safe multicultural study destination. The expressions of hybridity which are sanctioned within the international university are scripted by a neoliberal text, limiting the possibilities for more sophisticated intellectual engagements with the global.