Teacher recruitment and retention challenges are evident across many European education systems. In response, several countries have increasingly relied on internationally mobile teachers as part of broader workforce strategies aimed at diversifying the teaching profession and addressing labour shortages ​(Terhart & Rosen, 2022)​. Across Europe, these strategies often include targeted financial incentives and policy interventions designed to attract candidates with a migration background into Initial Teacher Education (ITE), as evidenced in national initiatives in countries such as Germany, Austria and Switzerland (Mantel, 2020). In England, similar approaches have involved international recruitment into Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) programmes, particularly in shortage subjects such as Physics and Modern Foreign Languages, supported by high-value bursaries and, until recently, relocation payments (DfE, 2025). At the same time, increasingly restrictive immigration regulations and tightened post-study visa pathways limit international trainees’ and Early Career Teachers’ (ECTs) capacity to secure employment and remain in the profession (Home Office, 2025). These contradictory policy signals generate uncertainty and risk, undermining recruitment and long-term retention.  This paper examines how, in England, international PGCE trainees and Early Career Teachers (ECTs) experience recruitment, training and early professional transitions, and how these experiences shape employability, retention and perceptions of curriculum inclusivity. While international recruitment into ITEs has expanded across Europe, research highlights persistent challenges relating to recognition, legitimacy and professional belonging for internationally mobile teachers​(Bense, 2016; Terhart & Rosen, 2022)​. In the UK context, evidence on Black, Asian and minority ethnic  teachers demonstrates the persistence of structural disadvantage and experiences of racism within the teaching profession ​(Tereshchenko et al., 2025)​.  

The study is guided by three research questions: (1) How do international PGCE trainees and ECTs experience recruitment, training and early career transition within ITE? (2) What structural barriers shape employability, retention and professional security for internationally mobile trainee teachers? and (3) How do institutional practices, racism and systemic bias influence experiences of belonging and curriculum inclusivity in teacher education? 

The paper reports findings from Phase 1 of a longitudinal qualitative study following multiple cohorts of international teachers across three years, including PGCE alumni trained prior to the introduction of international bursaries, ECTs from the first bursary cohort, current PGCE trainees and prospective applicants. Baseline data are drawn from pre-arrival surveys and semi-structured interviews with international PGCE offer-holders and early career teachers, enabling comparative analysis across contexts, subject areas and career stages. 

The analysis is informed by sociocultural theories of belonging and persistence ​(Tinto, 1994)​ perspectives on capital and legitimacy (Bourdieu, 1986), cross-cultural transition theory ​(Ward et al., 2001)​, and European scholarship on diversification within the teaching profession. Preliminary findings indicate that international trainees enter teacher education with strong professional motivation, high academic readiness and a clear commitment to teaching. However, these strengths coexist with significant uncertainty related to immigration status, employability, financial security and long-term career sustainability. Participants describe how misalignment between teacher education institutions, employment systems and migration governance produces insecurity that is structural rather than individual. As trainees transition into ECT roles, employability is frequently constrained not by subject demand or teaching capability, but by sponsorship arrangements and visa dependency, thereby concentrating attrition risk at the post-qualification stage 

The paper argues that international recruitment strategies focused primarily on entry incentives are insufficient to address teacher shortages sustainably. Financial support may facilitate access to training, but retention depends on coherent recognition frameworks that extend beyond recruitment into employment, professional progression and curriculum inclusion. By analysing international trainee and ECT experiences longitudinally, the study contributes to European debates on teacher mobility, recognition and equity, and offers insights for developing more inclusive and sustainable approaches to teacher education across national contexts. 

This study adopts a longitudinal qualitative research design to examine the experiences of international PGCE trainees and Early Career Teachers (ECTs) over time. The research follows four cohorts of international teachers across three years: PGCE alumni who trained prior to the introduction of international bursaries; ECTs from the first bursary cohort; current PGCE trainees; and prospective PGCE applicants. This design enables comparison across policy contexts, subject areas (bursaried and non-bursaried), and stages of professional transition. Phase one, reported in this paper, draws on baseline data generated through semi-structured interviews and online surveys. Participants are recruited using purposive sampling to ensure representation of international trainees and teachers with diverse national, linguistic and professional backgrounds. Semi-structured interviews explore participants’ recruitment journeys, experiences of training, perceptions of employability and retention, and encounters with racism, bias and institutional support. Interviews were conducted online, audio-recorded with consent, and transcribed verbatim. Survey instruments complement interview data by capturing demographic information, motivations for entering teaching, expectations of the PGCE, barriers to recruitment and early perceptions of belonging, inclusion and professional confidence. This mixed qualitative approach allows for triangulation between narrative accounts and broader patterns across cohorts. Data are analysed using a grounded theory–informed thematic approach. Initial open coding identifies key concepts emerging from participants’ accounts, followed by axial coding to explore relationships between categories such as belonging, legitimacy, employability and institutional support. Selective coding is used to develop a coherent analytical account of how policy, institutional practices and structural inequalities shape international trainees’ professional trajectories. Ethical approval has been obtained, with careful attention to informed consent, confidentiality and the sensitive nature of discussions relating to racism and immigration status.

Preliminary findings indicate that international PGCE trainees and ECTs enter the profession with strong motivation, professional commitment and subject expertise. However, these strengths coexist with significant uncertainty related to employability, immigration status, financial security and long-term career sustainability. Participants describe how policy contradictions, particularly the simultaneous encouragement of international recruitment and the tightening of immigration conditions, create precarity that shapes decisions about remaining in teaching. The findings also reveal a marked contrast between academic readiness and logistical vulnerability during pre-arrival and early career transition stages. Participants consistently report that administrative sequencing, visa processes, proof-of-funds requirements and housing access generate significant anxiety, financial exposure and emotional strain. Importantly, these risks are structural rather than individual. Uncertainty is produced by misaligned institutional and immigration systems rather than by lack of preparedness or commitment. Pre-arrival pressures emerge as an early point of attrition risk, shaping later experiences of belonging and professional security. As trainees transition into ECT roles, employability is frequently constrained not by capability or subject demand but by sponsorship arrangements and visa dependency. Participants describe power imbalances in employment relationships, limited institutional understanding of sponsorship requirements and substantial personal financial burdens associated with visa costs. These conditions restrict professional agency and concentrate attrition risk at the post-qualification stage. Losing an ECT role is experienced not only as a professional setback but as an immediate immigration crisis. Taken together, the findings suggest that international recruitment strategies focused solely on entry incentives are insufficient. Financial bursaries may enable access but do not guarantee retention without coordinated support across teacher education, employment and immigration systems. The study argues that inclusion must be actively designed through institutional practice and policy alignment. Sustainable international teacher recruitment depends on transparent sponsorship processes, equitable employment pathways and recognition of international teachers as long-term contributors to education systems in England and beyond.

Bense, K. (2016). International teacher mobility and migration: A review and synthesis of the current empirical research and literature. In Educational Research Review (Vol. 17, pp. 37–49). Elsevier Ltd. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2015.12.001 Bourdieu, P. (1986). The forms of capital. In J. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of theory and research for the sociology of education (pp. 241–258). Greenwood Press DfE (2025) International Relocation Payments. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/international-relocation-payments/international-relocation-payments (Accessed: 1 December 2025). Home Office (2025) Restoring Control over the Immigration System: White Paper. Available at: Restoring control over the immigration system: white paper - GOV.UK (Accessed: 1 December 2025). Mantel, C. (2020). Being a teacher with a so-called ‘immigrant background’: challenges of dealing with social boundaries. Intercultural Education, 31(2), 173–189. Tereshchenko, A., Kaur, B., Cara, O., Wiggins, A., & Pillinger, C. (2025). Racial microaggressions on the initial teacher education programmes: implications for minority ethnic teacher retention. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice, 31(7), 1065–1083. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2024.2397583 Terhart, H., & Rosen, L. (2022). Diversification of the teaching profession in Europe and beyond: Ambivalences of recognition in the context of (forced) migration. In European Educational Research Journal (Vol. 21, Number 2, pp. 203–213). SAGE Publications Inc. https://doi.org/10.1177/14749041211072633 Tinto, V. (1994). Leaving College: Rethinking the Causes and Cures of Student Attrition. In National Conference on Student Recruitment, Marketing and Retention (2nd ed.). University of Chicago Press. http://bibliovault.org/BV.landing.epl?ISBN=9780226804491 Ward, C., Bochner, S., & Furnham, A. (2001). The Psychology of Culture Shock. In The Psychology of Culture Shock (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203992258