Entering the teaching profession is widely recognised as a critical phase in teachers’ professional development, characterised by intensive workplace learning, early exposure to complex instructional and organisational responsibilities, and the gradual construction of a professional identity (Huberman, 1989; Feiman-Nemser, 2001). Research on teacher induction shows that experiences during the first years of teaching are decisive for teachers’ well-being, instructional practices and long-term retention (Johnson & Birkeland, 2003). Despite this, induction processes in many education systems remain weakly structured and unevenly implemented across schools.

Recent studies increasingly emphasise the organisational and relational dimensions of induction, highlighting how school-level conditions, professional communities and mentoring practices shape early career teachers’ opportunities for professional learning (Warren Little, 1999; Darling-Hammond, Hyler, & Gardner, 2017). From this perspective, induction can be understood as a process of organisational socialisation through which newcomers acquire norms, practices and relational resources enabling meaningful participation in professional life (Van Maanen & Schein, 1979). Importantly, mentoring and induction practices are not neutral or homogeneous, but often take the form of contested practices situated within specific organisational and cultural contexts (Kemmis et al., 2014).

This paper contributes to these debates by presenting findings from an exploratory qualitative study conducted in upper secondary education in the Canton of Ticino (Switzerland). The study examines how early career teachers experience their entry into the profession and how organisational conditions within schools shape their professional learning during the first years of teaching. Upper secondary education provides a particularly relevant context, as induction arrangements are only partially formalised and largely depend on local school practices and informal collegial relations.

Drawing on an ecological perspective, induction is approached as part of a broader constellation of practices, actors and institutional arrangements that structure teachers’ learning opportunities in the workplace (Heikkinen, 2020). The paper addresses three research questions:

1. How do early career teachers describe their experiences of entering the teaching profession in upper secondary education?
2. Which organisational conditions do they perceive as supportive or challenging during this phase?
3. How do these conditions influence their professional learning, sense of belonging and perceptions of work sustainability?

By foregrounding teachers’ perspectives, the study provides empirically grounded insights into how induction is enacted in everyday school practices. Rather than proposing a normative model, the paper documents how organisational arrangements structure early career teachers’ learning trajectories and discusses implications for professional learning and school leadership, contributing to ongoing discussions within Network 01 and current European debates on teacher induction and mentoring.

The study adopts a qualitative, exploratory design focused on teachers’ lived experiences of entering the profession. Data were collected through group interviews with teachers working in upper secondary schools in the Canton of Ticino. Approximately 70 teachers participated. Participants were identified in collaboration with school leadership teams to ensure variation in subject areas, school contexts and career stages. To capture different perspectives on induction and professional learning, teachers were grouped by experience: beginning teachers (first year), teachers with 1–3 years of experience, and experienced teachers with more than ten years of service. While the analytical focus lies on early career teachers, the inclusion of experienced teachers allowed for comparative and retrospective perspectives (Huberman, 1989). Group interviews were conducted at three key moments of the school year: the beginning of the year, the end of the first semester and the end of the year. This temporal design enabled the analysis of how challenges and learning needs evolved over time. Interviews followed a semi-structured protocol addressing reception and orientation, access to collegial support, instructional practices, organisational routines, workload and work sustainability. All interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using thematic analysis. The analysis combined inductive coding with sensitising concepts drawn from the literature on organisational socialisation and professional learning (Van Maanen & Schein, 1979; Warren Little, 1999). Coding and interpretation were discussed within the research team to enhance analytical credibility.

The findings show that entering the teaching profession in upper secondary education is a multifaceted process extending beyond the acquisition of instructional competences. Early career teachers describe induction as a period marked by organisational uncertainty, strong reliance on informal collegial support and significant pressures related to workload and emotional demands (Huberman, 1989). Four interconnected areas of challenge emerge. First, initial reception and orientation practices vary considerably across schools, shaping early feelings of security or disorientation. Second, socialisation into teaching practices depends largely on access to professional communities and subject departments, leading to unequal learning opportunities (Grossman et al., 1999; Warren Little, 1999). Third, contractual uncertainty in the early years affects teachers’ sense of belonging and long-term professional commitment (Johnson & Birkeland, 2003). Finally, concerns about work sustainability—time management, workload and emotional strain—are particularly salient during the first years of teaching. Across the findings, induction emerges as an organisationally embedded and relational process rather than an individual challenge. Consistent with research framing mentoring and induction as situated and contested practices (Kemmis et al., 2014), early career teachers’ learning opportunities are shown to depend strongly on local organisational arrangements and informal collegial relations. Interpreting induction as part of an ecosystem of practices (Heikkinen, 2020) helps to make sense of the strong variability observed across schools and highlights the need to address induction at the organisational level.

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