Abstract

As the number of international graduate students in the United States continues to increase, the number of students that are multilingual increases as well. As diversity is encouraged in higher institutions, it is important for faculty members to have an understanding of the influence of cultural differences on the academic lives of international students. In order to understand the views of international graduate students on how well they adapt to their new learning environment, this qualitative study sought to explore and describe the perception of international graduate students of the socio- communicative style, teaching, and learning styles of instructors. Interviews were used to investigate the perceptions of international graduate students of the difficulties they experienced at the onset of their learning. The data collection process also gave an opportunity to compare their perceptions of the teaching, learning, and communicative cultures in the U.S. and universities in their home countries. A convenience sample of 13 participants were interviewed to describe their perceptions and thoughts. Findings explored assertiveness and responsiveness behaviors of faculty members, as perceived by international graduate students.