Paper short abstract:

The paper adresses transnational high-skilled mobility and internationalization strategies in current Croatia. It explores challenges and obstacles for wellbeing of incoming and returning young professionals in academic and business sectors based on semi-structured interviews.

Paper long abstract:

The paper adresses the correspondence of transnational high-skilled mobility and of internationalization strategies in current Croatia. High-skilled outgoing mobility has been facilitated and significantly accelerated since Croatia's accession to the European Union in 2013. To counter brain drain effects and skilled labour shortages, both academic and business sectors invest into raising competitiveness through internationalization strategies, in order to enhance and benefit from transnational mobility. Based on semi-structured interviews with incoming and returning young professionals the paper inquires into experiences of (re-) integrating, embedding and participating in Croatian academic and business environments as social fields with respective work cultures and power configurations. Wheras internationalization strategies and policies are usually aligned with criteria of professional performance and advancement, those engaged in transnational mobility tend to make their choices and moves based on a complex assessment of structural conditions, local circumstances, personal motives, and comparative opportunities in order to determine their chances for wellbeing. The paper critically discusses the (non-) correspondence of policies with actual challenges and obstacles posed to the wellbeing of incoming and returning young professionals and researchers.