‘Giving back’ to one’s country following an international higher education scholarship: comparing in-country and expatriate alumni perceptions of engagement in social and economic change in Moldova

This qualitative study explores how graduates of Western higher education view their contributions to their home country’s social and economic development by comparing groups of international scholarship alumni who have returned to live in Moldova and expatriate alumni. Results indicate that country of residency influences one’s perceived contributions to the home country: alumni regard those living in Moldova as being more effective in creating change and that living abroad diminishes one’s influence. Notably, some graduates equate daily life contending with Moldova’s difficult conditions with contributing to national development. Moreover, ‘cyclical mobility’ – short-term engagements in Moldova – is proposed as a promising approach to affect change from abroad. Finally, respondents report that mobility decisions are strenuous, as they consider multiple factors other than desire to ‘give back’. Findings provide insight and nuance to the long-term efficacy of international higher education, and scholarship programmes specifically, to spur development in low- and middle-income countries.