This research investigates the interplay of capital, identity and institutional culture, focusing on the experiences of academics in Malaysian context. Internationalisation as the integration of ‘global dimensions’ in teaching, research and university networking is a becoming increasingly significant, driven by political, economic, and cultural forces (Knight, 2008). Research often focusses on macro level framework in management strategies and national strategies (Childress, 2009), meanwhile the key agents involved in implementing these processes remain under-researched (Romani-Dias et al., 2019). This research examines micro-level dynamics of internationalisation, acknowledging academics as active agents in shaping and shaped by these processes. Internationalisation’s initial focus on policy and institutional management are necessary, it needs to capture the nuanced realities of how internationalisation unfolds in department levels from bottom-up lens (Aziz & Abdullah, 2014, Munusamy & Hashim, 2019). In addition, existing literature reports the complex and challenging environment of internationalisation for academics, as tensions between local academic traditions and international expectations. This includes increase workload and job dissatisfaction and the potential impact of national and religious identities with pressure impacting academic careers due to prioritising internationalisation aspirations(Noor et al., 2022; Evison et al., 2019).

The research explores how Malaysians academics navigate internationalization through their professional identities, access to various forms of capital, and institutional culture shape their agency. This research questions are: 1)to investigate how Malaysian academics fulfil their academic roles for internationalisation and how the capital (culture, social, symbolic) influences their experiences; 2) to examine how internationalisation initiatives impact the professional and national identity of the academics; 3) to explore how institutional culture influences the agency in shaping their experience.

The study uses Sanderson’s framework of the academic self in internationalisation and Bourdieu’s theory of habitus, field, and capital.  Sanderson’s (2008) framework provides a lens on how academics construct and negotiate their professional identities with the evolving internationalisation landscape. It allows understanding how academics perceive themselves in their roles to conform to internationalisation standards and expectations. Complementing Sanderson’s framework, Bourdieu’s theory on habitus, field and capital (Bourdieu, 1986) offers a lens on how the various forms of capital (cultural, social and symbolic) in institutional field that influences academic agency. This covers how institutional culture, power dynamics and hierarchies, similar to Borlaug et al (2023) research-focused and teaching focused academics impact distribution and value of capital. Integrating Bourdieu's macro-level perspective provides nuanced understanding of the interplay between individual agency and institutional structures. This study also considers criticisms of internationalization on the prevalence of Western models and the possibility of neo-colonial influences. Criticisms include the conflicts between traditional and modern academic positions (Ylijoki & Ursin, 2013) and the impact of outside forces on academic work (Kogan, 2000) as multiple tasks are not aligned with their career goals and lack of institutional resources to support diverse demands.

This study explores how internationalisation, often seen as homogenizing, interacts with these constructs to shape academic paths in Malaysia, a developing nation with multi-ethnic and multi-cultural composition (Azman & Aziz, 2006), offering valuable insights from a non-Western perspectives on these power dynamics. Given empirical focus on Malaysia, examining the potential tension between national institutional norms and the drive for global integration Vinther and Slethaug (2013) emphasize upholding national pedagogical principles, requiring academics to adapt and negotiate these tensions.  Different institutional definitions on internationalisation shapes academic agency, often reiterating hierarchies based on research publications and language competency, specifically in South-East Asia. Additionally, by examining any similarities and differences between Malaysian strategies with UK and European countries, this research aims to contribute to broader understanding of international academic practices and provide perspectives that are flexible enough to be applied in different contexts.

The research design includes collecting data from academics in one public research university in Malaysia using a qualitative approach by utilising semi-structured interviews and document analysis. As empirical foundation of this research is to focus on academics’ experience with internationalisation, their perception of their professional roles, identities and strategies to navigate internationalisation is explored. Semi-structured interviews are selected for their flexibility and depth, allowing guided yet open-ended conversation, enabling the researcher to explore various topics in detail while remaining focused on the core research questions (Magaldi & Berler, 2020). The conversational, open-ended style of semi-structured interviews creates space for participants to discuss their perceptions, opinions, and experiences in depth (Bryman, 2016). The construction of the interview questions is based on the conceptual framework and the analysis in understanding how these concepts influence academic roles in internationalisation. The documents pertaining internationalisation were analysed prior to fieldwork referring to documents on Malaysian internationalisation policies and strategies. Other institutional documents including policies, guidelines, rules or teaching guide circulated internally will be analysed if mentioned during the interview and given the permission by the respondents. 40 academics across one research university in Malaysia were selected to be part of the interview ranging from various background. Bryman’s purposive sampling strategy was adopted who fits in the inclusion criteria as a Malaysian citizen lecturer and have worked with a minimum of 3 years. The academics roles ranged from deans, deputy dean and lecturers and from different disciplines (science and social science background). A single institution is selected to futher enrich the perspectives regarding institutional culture and experience in the selected institution, aiming to provide a landscape of academics working environment. The interview session will be conducted preferably on campus or via online platform to accommodate any unexpected circumstances that might occur. The interview will take approximately 60-90 minutes depending on the availability of the respondents. A pilot study was conducted before fieldwork to familiarise with the interview process and to monitor any problems related to construction of questions or the allocation of time. The assessment of emergent themes will be conducted based on the institutional environment and the academicians background and experience. Data will be analysed using Nvivo software using thematic analysis to explore themes and patterns in relation to the internationalisation process. Institution name will be anonymised, and respondents’ information will be replaced with pseudonym following the research ethical guidelines.

The preliminary data from the study has shed some complex realities of internationalisation in Malaysian higher education, examining academics' lived experiences by going beyond broad generalizations at the macro level. This early stage of findings reveals that internationalization is a dynamic process influenced by the interaction of personal agency, access to diverse types of capital (social, cultural, and symbolic), and the negotiation of local and global identities rather than a single, homogenizing force. This initial results specifically shows how Malaysian academicians actively navigating into the international academic scene, wisely using their resources to seize opportunities while preserving and modifying their professional identities within a distinct sociocultural setting although initial findings reported a lack of facilities and financial opportunities for mobility as there are restrictions. Academics also identifies themselves and government servants as being under a public institution and therefore must adhere to any rules and regulations for all public servants which creates conflict in some nature of academics’ profession which is flexible reflecting in systemic inequalities in academic governance. The respondents from a specific religion assosicated their professional identity to their religious beliefs encouraging them to fulfill their roles as academicians. Higher education organizations and policymakers should take note of these findings and individual differences as by acknowledging the agency of individual academics and comprehending the various types of capital that impact their experiences, educational institutions can create more focused and efficient internationalization plans. This could involve recognizing and appreciating the contributions of local knowledge and experience while simultaneously offering professional development opportunities that improve academics' research abilities, global networks, and funding access. This study is hoped to offer some understanding from a developing nation context, providing a foundation for an equitable and impactful strategies for internationalisation that can empower academics in strengthening higher education institutions.

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