This study demonstrates how to simulate intercultural immersion while in a domestic setting to offer opportunities for teacher candidates to enhance their abilities to teach in culturally diverse settings, to develop cultural knowledge, and to reflect on their roles as educators. The paper presents a comparative case study of intercultural immersion across two contexts with similar course content and pedagogy, and the impact of that cultural immersion on pre service teachers' cultural competence. The study compares the development of cultural competence among six teacher candidates in an American teacher preparation program, and six teacher candidates in an Israeli college of education, based on the Cultural Competence for Teacher Education (CCTE) Framework.