Abstract
An ever-challenging and increasing dilemma facing schools is nding quali ed individuals who are willing to take school leadership positions. This study extends the current literature by surveying 243 eligible candidates for school administrative positions to investigate the barriers to pursuing a school leadership position, and examine the effects of their background characteristics on their decisions to apply for a leadership position. The results of this study indicated that more than 57% of the participants did not plan to become school administrators. The top ve rated barriers to pursuing a school leadership position were: satis fied with current role, don't feel prepared, family considerations and responsibilities, long hours required of administrators, and lack of support for new administrators. Logistic regression analysis revealed that age and gender were signi cant predictors. Implications for university leadership programs and potential questions for future research were discussed.