Exploring Professional Identity among Refugee EFL Teachers at UNRWA University in Jordan

HRMARS - This study explores how refugee English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers at UNRWA University in Jordan construct their professional identities within a context shaped by displacement, institutional expectations, and sociocultural challenges. Adopting a qualitative case study design, data were generated through reflective diaries and semi-structured interviews with ten refugee EFL teachers working in the Faculty of Educational Sciences and Arts (FESA). Reflexive thematic analysis, informed by Braun and Clarke’s (2006) framework, was employed with the support of MAXQDA-2024 for data management. The findings reveal that teacher identity is dynamic, negotiated, and continuously reshaped through the interaction of personal agency and socially mediated practices. Identity construction was influenced by emotional investment, prior learning experiences, institutional culture, collegial collaboration, mentorship, and refugee-related realities. The study contributes to teacher identity literature by offering context- specific insights from a refugee higher education setting and highlights the need for structured professional development, mentorship, and collaborative learning communities.