Transformative Role of Faculty in International Students’ Perceptions of Their Psychological, Cultural, and Linguistic Adjustments

Abstract

The growing number of international students pursuing education abroad has led to increased interest in understanding their experiences, particularly regarding their academic life and interactions within the host country. This growing international presence on U.S. campuses, on the other hand, has heightened the interest in faculty perceptions of international students. While international students face legitimate linguistic and academic challenges in U.S. universities, faculty perceptions reveal problematic biases, assumptions, and blind spots. This empirical study aims to explore the role of international students’ psychological, cultural, and linguistic adjustments on faculty perceptions through an online survey at a southeastern university. The research questions focus on international students’ perceptions of their academic life in the host country compared to faculty perceptions of international students’ academic and linguistic interactions. The survey results from international graduate and undergraduate students at the target university represent the international students’ perceptions of their psychological, cultural, and linguistic adjustments in higher education in the host country. The findings declared that almost half of the participants were not psychologically adjusted to their new academic endeavors in the host country. This study opens new chapters in transformative dialogues between faculty and international students to flourish the scholarship of teaching and learning. These transformative discourses will promote higher education to not only move beyond stereotypes but also to recognize the legacies and value systems international students represent.