The Changing Landscape of UK Higher Education: Professional (in)stability of EU academics and professional staff facing an uncertain future in UK Universities.

Following the June 2016 referendum, the future of EU workers in UK Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) has become unstable. This political uncertainty affects the global competitiveness of the UK’s HE sector with several EU academics intending to leave, while others have already left.

The project (April - August 2018) explored how EU academics and professional staff in English and Scottish universities negotiated the uncertainties brought on by Brexit-related migration policy changes, before March 2019.

The project involved surveys and interviews in England and Scotland, with the highest leave and remain vote respectively (The Electoral Commission, 2016). Moving beyond labour market-focused explanatory models, the project took an intersectional perspective (i.e. it brought together different social divisions such as nationality and gender) in examining how political changes influenced EU migrants’ strategies for achieving professional stability. 

You can read about the main findings of this research here: https://www.timeshighereducation.com/opinion/uk-universities-eu-born-staff-do-not-live-brexit-proof-bubble

For further information on the project, please contact: 

Dr Jawiria Naseem (PI)
Email: j.naseem@bham.ac.uk