Career difficulties and strategies of female self-initiated expatriates and self-initiated expatriate couples in Switzerland

Author(s) : Nathalie Mancini-Vonlanthen

Source : https://doc.rero.ch/record/330530

“Contrary to the discussed political framing of a “migrant” who may be at risk for non-
integration into the labor market and society, this thesis is focused on self-initiated expatriates

(corresponding to the concept introduced by McNulty & Brewster (2017)) and their

spouses/partners in Switzerland. These couples are in transition periods and, although highly
qualified and integrated into the labor market, experience a high amount of stress and
uncertainty related to their career paths and private lives. In one hand, these are female self-
initiated expatriates and their partners (dual-career couples) with small children, and on the
other hand comprises self-initiated expatriate couples in the postdoctoral career phase. Hence,
this thesis contests the prior framing of the “migrant” who may be at social risk due to skill
deficiency and non-integration into the national labor market and the well-educated, successful
“expatriate” (Yeung, 2016).“