Challenges Experienced by Overseas-educated Early Career Faculty (ECF)

AbstractResearch indicates that overseas-educated academics may face challenges, including different mind-set regarding how systems work, belief and value differences, and mismatch between expectations and actual gains in their early career stage, upon return to their home countries, This study explores the main challenges faced by overseas-educated Early Career Faculties (ECFs) upon returning to Malaysia and the impact of these challenges on their career performance and professional development. A series of 3 in-depth focus group interviews were conducted with a total of 15 participants from a public university in Malaysia. Results identified personal factors, teaching, research, and publication as the main challenges and, as a result, even talented ECFs may face intellectual, emotional and psychological distress, indirectly affecting their career performance and work motivation