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Chinese and Polish Student Migration in London

20 January 2020, 2:00 pm–3:00 pm

Event 20200120

This event is part of the SSEES Research Student Seminar Series. Join us to hear SSEES research students discuss their projects.

Event Information

Open to

All

Availability

Yes

Organiser

Claudia Roland

Location

Masaryk Senior Common Room
SSEES
16 Taviton Street
London
WC1H 0BW
United Kingdom

Currently international student migration is a key phenomenon in the UK, but the ‘study of international student migration/mobility (ISM) is a relatively neglected field in migration research’ (King and Raghuram, 2013: 127). Chinese and Polish students in the UK are good examples of ISM from East and West in a common foreign space. However, the research interests and methods on student migration from these two countries are quite different. It is therefore necessary to put them into the same theoretical framework in a comparative study, and thus possibly broadening or testing the existing migration theories.

This research explores and compares the migration process of Chinese and Polish international students pursuing their degree studies (BA, MA or PhD) in London. The main research objectives are their migration motivations (before arriving) and their integration process (after arriving). The key research questions are: What are their motivations for migration and plans for the future? What are the main changes after their migration (outlook on the world, life and values, self-identity, etc.)? What is the mechanism of their integration into local surroundings?

About the Speaker

Hexuan Zhang

PhD candidate at UCL SSEES

Hexuan is a CSC-funded research student at the School of Slavonic and East European Studies (SSEES), University College London (UCL). His doctoral research focuses on Chinese and Polish international student migration in the UK. He completed a BA in Polish Language and Literature at Beijing Foreign Studies University, and an MA in European Studies at Guangdong University of Foreign Studies. Before pursuing his PhD degree, he worked as a journalist in China Radio International, and then a lecturer of Polish language at Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.