The paper examines the experiences of graduate international students in the United States as they construct meanings out of their lived experiences. These meanings reflect their social and academic perceptions of their host nations and what in turn end being their social reality. Fifteen students were interviewed and data was coded and analyzed using thematic analysis. The results revealed that graduate international students construct their reality from perceived social and academic realities. They gravitate more towards their fellow international students and they go through both social and academic pressures which may require institutional mitigation.