Based on a research project titled "Reaching the Global Stage from the Semi-periphery: Recruitment and Retention of International Faculty Members in Turkish Universities" (2023-2026) supported by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye, this study mainly focuses on a. the national policies in place towards hiring international faculty (as highly skilled migrants) and their evolution over time, b. institutional strategies the universities put in place towards international faculty and c. experiences of international academics with regards to their employment process, academic career, marital/family relationships, and interactions with students. In order to grasp these phenomena thoroughly, the data were collected primarily through semi-structured interviews from national policy makers (n=15) to capture the national level, university administrations of six universities (n=24) for the institutional level and international faculty members (n=60) and students from those six universities (n=24) for the individual level. Although this proposal is based on preliminary findings, we intend to use data from all interviews as we continue the process of data analysis in the final year of the project which is expected to be completed before the respective conference. Internationalization of higher education has been among the main pillars of higher education research. The focus of this research has generally been on the experiences of international students and only rarely on international faculty members. Furthermore, the specific case of international academics in Türkiye, a semi-periphery country, is much less studied. Wallerstein’s world-systems theory is used to investigate the global landscape of higher education and scientific production. According to this theory, the Turkish higher education system would be considered a case from the semi-periphery. While developing cooperation mechanisms with the West (US, UK and EU) and supporting outward mobility for its students and researchers to these countries, Turkish higher education, at the same time, is becoming a hub for MENA and Central Asia regions in the last decades. 

In this paper, we focus on three main dimensions from our preliminary findings from a sociological perspective. First is the geopolitical dimension. In global academic mobility discourse, the focus has traditionally been on the flow of scholars and students from the Global South to the Global North, particularly to Western countries. However, this narrative oversimplifies the complexity of contemporary academic mobility. Türkiye, as a semi-peripheral country, offers a unique context to examine these dynamics, particularly as it increasingly attracts academics from both the Global South and North. The reorientation of migration dynamics highlights the shifting East-West logic that is reshaping academic mobility pathways. This shift not only influences the socio-demographic profiles of migrating academics but also impacts return dynamics and the reintegration of scholars in their home countries. The underexplored regional dimension of academic mobility, particularly to semi-peripheral countries, also reflects the broader influence of global academic hierarchies and geopolitical shifts. 

The second dimension focuses on the academic career paths and precarisation of international faculty members. Although attracting international researchers is highlighted in the national development plan, in the strategic plan for internationalization by the Council of Higher Education in Türkiye and in the institutional strategies of the universities, the working conditions of international faculty members are precarious in many aspects. Such conditions of precarity will be presented and discussed with reference to global debates on precarisation of academic career (OECD, 2021).

The third dimension focuses on the gendered restructuring of international mobility careers of academics in Turkey. It identifies three profiles of academic couples and examines how intersectional aspects of identity (gender, nationality, career stage) influence their experiences. The study highlights the impact of institutional structures and policies on gender roles and life satisfaction of international academic couples.

This paper is based on the findings of the national research project entitled Reaching the Global Stage from the Semi-Periphery: Recruitment and Retention of International Faculty Members in Turkish Universities, supported by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBİTAK 3501 program). In the current study, qualitative research methods were applied at the national, institutional, and individual levels, with a focus on Istanbul, Ankara, and Karabük. These cities were selected based on data from 2017–2018 Turkiye’s Council of Higher Education (YÖK) to analyze the trends in international faculty recruitment. The fieldwork was composed of semi-structured interviews with 15 representatives of the authorized institutions to investigate national policies on international academic employment; 24 middle and senior managers from six universities-public and foundation, with English and Turkish as the languages of instruction-to explore institutional strategies; and 60 international academics, 24 Turkish academics, and 24 students in order to understand individual experiences and perceptions. Data collection and transcription is complete and coding in NVivo is currently in process. The following proposal is developed based on the preliminary findings, while the full data analysis is expected before the completion of ECER 2025.

The internationalization of higher education in Türkiye has undergone significant transformations over the past two decades, shaped by geopolitical shifts, evolving academic career structures, and intersectional identity dynamics. These changes have influenced the composition of international faculty, their career trajectories, and their experiences of integration within Turkish academia and society. The following sections explore these transformations across three key dimensions. At a geopolitical level, the data show a decrease in the numbers of international faculty from the West and an increase from the MENA region and Central Asia in the last decades. This is, among other factors, related to a shift in the geopolitical discourse and positioning of the country. Namely, a shift from Türkiye as a candidate for EU membership developing scientific cooperation with EHEA and ERA, to Türkiye as a regional leader developing cultural, political and economic ties within its region using internationalization policies in HE as an instrument for increasing its ‘soft power’. At the level of academic career paths and precarity, findings from the diverse experiences of the participants enable us to map the shifts in the academic career paths and the precarity especially early career researchers face. The paper will point out the contradiction that internationalization has been among the main pillars of national higher education systems and universities, and however, international faculty members are mostly employed under precarious conditions. In terms of gender, our initial fieldwork findings identified three distinct profiles of academic couples regarding the challenges they face and the ways they navigate the cultural and professional landscapes of Türkiye: i. Foreigners married to foreign wives, ii. Foreigners married to Turkish citizens and iii. Foreigners who arrived separately from their spouses or who separated and eventually married Turkish women.

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