Social Networks in Doctoral Socialization: Insights from Funded International Students from Kazakhstan

Studies on doctoral socialization rarely explore the unique nature of social networks important for socialization of international students. This study fills the gap in existing research by exploring social networks of statefunded doctoral students from Kazakhstan. Drawing on the results of indepth online interviews the study concludes that the obligation to return to their home country makes the student oriented to the domestic job market, pushes them to be more active in preparation to the market and encourages them to strategically engage not only in the host-country but also in home-country social networks. The study concludes that doctoral training programs in host countries should recognize the external academic market orientation of some international doctoral students and should take more active steps in supporting their engagement with relevant social networks from home, while future research should take into consideration the importance of home country players in international doctoral student socialization.