Abstract
Previous research concerning Global South doctoral students in the United Kingdom has mainly situated their experiences within adaptationist paradigms, emphasising cultural adjustment and assimilation into Western academic norms. Such studies often depict students as passive recipients, overlooking their agency and the transformative potential inherent in the doctoral journey. To address this gap, we draw on Paulo Freire’s concept of praxis and Marginson’s theory of self-formation to explore how Global South doctoral students actively negotiate their academic journeys within the established hierarchies of Western academia. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with 22 Global South doctoral students at an elite UK university, this paper conceptualises their self-formation as a dynamic, three-stage process: Internalised Prestige, Reflexive Repositioning and Transformative Engagement. While students initially internalise the symbolic authority of Western academia, they gradually develop critical awareness through lived encounters with marginalisation and institutional barriers, ultimately engaging in transformative practices that challenge dominant norms and seek to reshape spaces of knowledge production. This ongoing process is characterised by negotiation, ambivalence and incremental change. By foregrounding Global South doctoral students’ agency and the context-specific challenges they face, this research offers fresh insights into current discussions about epistemic justice and the decolonisation of higher education in the Global North.