Faculty members’ decisions to leave universities in less-developed regions have become a major challenge for Iran’s higher education system, resulting in reduced academic capacity, declining quality, and widening regional inequalities. This study aims to explain the process through which faculty members formed their decisions to leave these universities. A qualitative design based on constructivist grounded theory was adopted. The participants included sixteen faculty members who had experienced leaving universities in less-developed regions. They were selected through purposive and theoretical sampling until theoretical saturation was achieved. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed using open, axial, and selective coding. The findings showed that leaving decisions did not result from a single factor but emerged through the gradual interaction of economic, professional, organizational, family, and regional conditions, culminating in the development of the perceived comprehensive career–life deadlock, which constituted the core category of the study. Before leaving the university, participants pursued various strategies, including enduring existing conditions, attempting to improve their situation, seeking transfer, accepting temporary assignments, or requesting a leave of absence. They decided to leave the university only after these strategies had proved unsuccessful. The resulting theoretical model explained leaving as a gradual, context-dependent, and multi-stage process and provided a conceptual framework for understanding this phenomenon. The findings further indicated that faculty retention required integrated policies addressing economic, professional, organizational, family, and regional dimensions simultaneously. Therefore, reducing regional inequalities and strengthening the professional, research, and welfare capacities of universities in less-developed regions were identified as essential policy priorities.