With the large-scale global competence assessment carried out by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the international talent cultivation goal of global competence has received extensive international attention. This study, from the perspective of conceptual history, conducts an in-depth analysis of the origin and diffusion mechanism of the global competence education concept. Taking the United States, which promotes global competence assessment or achieves outstanding results in such assessment, as the main case, it deeply analyzes the United States’ understanding and cultivation path of the global competence concept, in order to gain a global understanding to gain a deeper understanding of the essence of competence. Research has found that the global competence developed by the United States falls under the category of integrated talent cultivation goals, mainly including four similar elements: willingness to participate in international affairs, an open and inclusive attitude, cross-cultural communication, and taking action. The survey found that the total scores for American students’ global competence were concentrated between 300 and 330 points, with an average of 314.53 points. The average total score for students’ global competence was at an above-average level, which to some extent indicates that the overall level of American students’ global competence is good. As the initiator of the global competence concept, although the United States does not have a powerful central government like China, the federal Department of Education has a top-level design awareness in the promotion and implementation of the concept, demonstrating a clear overall design and multi-party participation promotion model.
