Abstract:
Being a successful postgraduate is a complex matter. For international students, the challenges are likely to be magnified, and the arrival in a new culture setting will add a further layer of complexity to their needs (Flutter, 2016). While doctoral candidates efforts, productivities, and milestones are visible, there is a sizeable gap in our understanding of their lived experiences (Bilecen, 2014; Gardner, 2009; McAlpine, 2012; Phelps, 2016). This may cause some scholars to erroneously homogenise and generalise international students' daily negotiations. However lived experiences vary immensely, and this qualitative-insider study investigates the more "human" aspects of the doctoral journey, by interviewing Maldivian doctoral candidates [7] and graduates [6] who have pursued their doctoral education in various countries [U.K, U.S.A, Australia, New Zealand, and China]. As such, this paper provides an insight into the lives of 15 Maldivian doctorates to describe their motives for pursuing a doctoral degree and the challenges commonly faced during and after their doctoral journey. Theoretically, the paper is guided by push/pull theories and the concept of transnational fields to analyse individual stories. Emerging themes show that doctoral students' motives to pursue a doctoral degree and perceptions of the challenges encountered during their journey vary. While the candidate's development of criticality and confidence are evident, there are concerns surrounding inadequate academic skills and uncertainties for their plans after graduation. The research also raises major questions underlining the true meaning of 'mobility' and motives for 'relocation'.