To Leave or to Stay: Faculty Mobility in the Middle East

Abstract

Existing research on faculty mobility generally investigates the issue in the context of Western postsecondary institutions. This study adds to the body of knowledge through studying higher education faculty in six Middle Eastern countries. Participants of the study were higher education faculty members in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Out of 600 faculty members initially invited, 139 completed the electronic survey, whichwas administered in the 2017–2018 academic year. The findings show that factors both internal and external to an institution contributed to a faculty member’s decision to stay or leave. It also shows that gender and experience in the GCC Universities had no significant effect on faculty members’ intentions to leave or to stay.