VietTESOL International Convention 2025

This study aims to explore the motivations of second-career EFL teachers (SCETs) for pursuing doctoral studies in English language teaching (ELT). While teacher motivation has been extensively studied at the entry level of the profession, limited attention has been given to experienced educators who transition into ELT from other fields and later choose to pursue doctoral-level study. This qualitative, cross-sectional inquiry adopts a multiple case study design to examine how motivational factors interact at a specific point in time to shape these teachers’ academic pursuits. Participants include two SCETs: one mid-career teacher with six years and one late-career teacher with eleven years of ELT experience. Both transitioned from other professional backgrounds into ELT, bringing diverse experiences to their pursuit of doctoral education. Data will be collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews and document analysis. In addition to the reflective statements submitted as part of their doctoral applications, the study will analyze their doctoral research proposals with participants’ informed consent, focusing on how their chosen topics reveal underlying motivations related to their professional and academic trajectories. Acknowledging the complex interplay of SCET's experiences, the study is guided by Complex Dynamic Systems Theory (CDST) (Diane Larsen-Freeman, 2017). CDST provides a powerful lens for tracing the factors that lead to motivation in response to interactions among individual histories, institutional environments, and broader sociocultural contexts. Using thematic analysis, the findings are expected to contribute to a deeper understanding of SCETs’ motivations and offer practical implications for ELT doctoral recruitment, supervision, and program design.