Sustainable careers of immigrant academics

We explore career narratives of immigrant academics in Canada and the UK, using the lens of the sustainable careers framework, which is characterised by three indicators: happiness, health and productivity. Academic careers are unique in several ways: academic freedom allows scholars to research topics that are meaningful to them, thereby aligning work with individual values. Another aspect is the long-term orientation of academic jobs, which may offer permanent contracts that guarantee job security, supporting wellbeing. For immigrant academics, these issues are even more salient, as they have to adjust to a new country while managing their careers. We identify that there is a complex interplay between the three sustainable careers indicators, such that it is unlikely to have multiple indicators satisfied concurrently, and there are tradeoffs that are typical to this specific population. These findings raise awareness of unique issues that characterise the career sustainability of immigrant academics.