The enrollment numbers of international students studying in U.S. colleges and universities are continuing to rise. It is predicted that there will be about 8 million international students by 2025 as compared to 2 million in 2004 (an increase of 300%). To ensure that international students have an effective online learning experience, faculty members must increase their efforts to engage with them. Faculty help international students belong, connect, and interact in the online learning community. They also help these students learn about available online tools to access resources and support student-instructor relationships. This mixed-method study examined international students' perceptions and experiences in online learning. This study also investigated how faculty can effectively interact with these students. The study included 234 participants who completed a survey and 10 participants who agreed to be interviewed. Participants were undergraduate and graduate international students currently enrolled in at least one online course in the last 24 months as part-time or full-time students at community colleges and 4-year higher education institutions in the United States. Participants were asked to share their perceptions and experiences in online learning, the nature of their relationship with their instructors, the relationship formed between them, and the type of cultural values that predict student-instructor relationships. The study found that faculty interaction does have an impact on international students' success in online learning. In addition, the study found a strong association between collectivism and student-instructor relationships in online learning. This highlights the importance of the connectedness of faculty for successful learning in the online classroom environment. International students identified certain attributes of faculty that supported effective online learning, including acknowledging international students cultural background and values, encouraging students' interaction, and offering communication support to international students in building relationships in online learning. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]