Student Migration from Eastern to Western Europe

✍ Scribed by Mette Ginnerskov-Dahlberg

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2021
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 205
• Series: Routledge Studies in Development, Mobilities and Migration
• Edition: 1
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

This book explores European student migration from the perspectives of Eastern European students moving to Western Europe for study.

Whilst most research on student migration in Europe focuses on the experiences of Western European students, this book uniquely casts a light on Eastern European student migrants moving to the ‘West’. Mette Ginnerskov-Dahlberg deploys a novel approach to the subject by drawing on insights gleaned from a longitudinal study of master's students pursuing an education abroad and their multifaceted journeys after graduation. Thereby, she brings their narratives to life and highlights the changes and continuities they experienced over a period of seven years, fostering an understanding of student mobility as an activity enmeshed with adult commitments and long-term aspirations. Using Denmark as a case study of a host country, Ginnerskov-Dahlberg analyses the trajectories of these students and situates their experiences within the wider socio-historical context of Eastern European post-socialism and the contemporary dynamics between EU and non-EU citizens in the welfare state of Denmark – reflecting issues playing out on the global stage today.

This book will be a valuable resource for students and scholars of migration and mobility studies, as well as human geography, sociology, higher education, area studies and anthropology.

✦ Table of Contents

Cover
Half Title
Endorsement
Series Information
Title Page
Copyright Page
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements
1 Introduction
Scope of the Book
Eastern European Students on the Move
The Narrative Construction of Eastern Europe
Out of Sight, Out of Mind? Coming of Age in Post-Socialist Europe
An Unprecedented ‘Space of Possibilities’
Previous Studies on Student Migration/Mobility in Europe
Internationalisation in Denmark
Eastern European Students in Denmark
Structure of the Book
Notes
References
2 Methodology and Analytical Tools
Two Waves of Data Collection
The Interlocutors
Blurred Lines
Reflexive Observations
Identifying Analytical Patterns
Theoretical Tools
The Intricate Route From Lived Experience to Text
Narrative Identity
Four Narrative Levels
Performing Narratives
Divestment Passages
Stigma
Notes
References
3 ‘Go West!’ Eastern European Students’ Motivations for Pursuing an Education in Denmark
Travelling Narratives
A Powerful Metanarrative of ‘The West’
Escaping the Ghost of Communism
Eastern European Westerners
A Sense of Existential Stagnation
A Yearning for Normalcy
An Affordable Study Destination in the West
Conclusions
Notes
References
4 ‘Thrivers’ and ‘Dead Guys’: The Lives of Eastern European Students in the West
An Unprecedented Level of Precariousness: Finding a Job (Fast!)
In No-Job-Land: Peter and Adam
A Discrepancy Between Past and Present
Coming to Terms With New Ontological Narratives
Dirty, Dull, and Dangerous Jobs
Financial Freedom to Choose
The Influence of Social Networks on Student Migrants’ Sense of Belonging
An ‘Aura of Calmness’ and the Moral Advantages of Hardship
Ghetto-living
Becoming Eastern European in the West
Fearing Stigma
Managing a Spoiled Identity
Reclaiming One’s Heritage and the Question of Return
Conclusions
Notes
References
5 Should I Stay or Should I Go?: The Social and Geographical Trajectories of Eastern European Graduates
Introduction
An Evolving Policy Framework
Graduation: Attempts at Settling in Denmark
In Search of Recognition
Staying Against the Odds
The Advantages of Having an EU Citizenship?
Homecoming
A Sense of Continuity
Family First
Homecoming in the EU’s Immediate Outside
Onward Journeys
Transnational Ties and ‘Random’ Destinations
Flexible Skills
Abroad but not a Foreigner – Onward Mobility to Eastern Europe
Conclusions
Notes
References
6 Conclusion
The Complex Paths to Denmark – Beyond Economic Logic
Towards a Broader Conceptualisation of Youth Mobility
Evolving Stories
References
Index