Season 6: A New Frontier: PhD Journeys into the Unknown

In this second episode, we delve into the topic of Research Mobility among African women scholars.

According to Momeni et al. (2020), academic progress is significantly influenced by international collaboration among researchers. Research mobility, defined as the ability or opportunity for researchers to move and pursue academic activities in different locations, institutions, or countries, plays a crucial role in fostering these global collaborations.

Join us on this episode of the Mawazo Ideas Podcast as we explore various forms of research mobility, the motivations behind African women pursuing PhD studies abroad, the challenges they encounter, and their strategies for overcoming these obstacles. Our discussions are enriched by application data from the Mawazo Fellowship Programme, as well as insights from our Fellows and Alumni.

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Further reading:

• Momeni, F., Karimi, F., Mayr, P., Peters, I., & Dietze, S. (2022). The many facets of academic mobility and its impact on scholars’ career. Journal of Informetrics, 16(2), 101280. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joi.2022.101280 

• Knight, J., & Woldegiorgis, E. (2017). Regionalization of African Higher Education: Progress and Prospects. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6300-956-0

• Woldegiorgis, E. T., & Doevenspeck, M. (2015). Current trends, challenges and prospects of student mobility in the African higher education landscape. International Journal of Higher Education, 4(2). https://doi.org/10.5430/ijhe.v4n2p105

• Prozesky, H., & Beaudry, C. (2019). Mobility, gender and career development in higher Education: results of a Multi-Country survey of African academic scientists. Social Sciences, 8(6), 188. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci8060188

• Cañibano, C., Otamendi, J., & Andújar, I. (2008). Measuring and assessing researcher mobility from CV analysis: the case of the Ramón y Cajal programme in Spain. Research Evaluation, 17(1), 17–31. https://doi.org/10.3152/095820208x292797

• Prozesky, H. (2008). A Career-History Analysis of Gender Differences in Publication Productivity among South African Academics. Science & Technology Studies, 21(2), 47–67. https://doi.org/10.23987/sts.55226