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Competition among developed industrialised countries for highly skilled migrants has increased in recent decades with the onset of the knowledge-based economy and society (Triandafyllidou and Isaakyan 2014). The share of highly skilled migrants reached 30% in 2011 (Eurostat 2011), and several Western countries have resorted to migration policies as an instrument to fill the gaps in the supply of skilled workers in knowledge-based economies (European Migration Network 2007; OECD-EU 2016; Burmann et al. 2018). While highly skilled workers represent key talent pools for companies, they are often the first to lose their jobs in the event of an economic downturn and face poor career outcomes, such as underemployment, brain waste, lower wages, worst working conditions and de-skilling (eg, Lo et al. 2017), as a result of individual, organizational and environmental factors (Syed 2008; Al Ariss et al. 2012). Despite several governments are taking measures to address inequalities in wages and labour force participation (UNDESA 2020), the anti-immigration sentiment and rampant populism in several countries (eg, Brexit, US travel ban, and European-level discussions on migration issues)(OECD 2016) does not help in solving discrimination, cross-cultural adjustment and other difficulties (eg, Dietz et al. 2015).

In addition to these trends, highly skilled migration trends have increasingly feminized over time, both in OECD and non-OECD countries (Özden et al. 2011). Highly skilled female migration presents several peculiar characteristics that are worth noting, such as unconventional migration biographies (eg, Enríquez and Triandafyllidou …