Educational and Occupational Aspirations of Refugees
Author(s) : Ihssane Otmani
Source : https://serval.unil.ch/fr/notice/serval:BIB_A912279339E9
Abstract:
Paper I: Towards a “low ambition equilibrium”: managing refugee aspirations during the integration process in Switzerland
Ihssane Otmani
Abstract: This article explores the role of policy in influencing refugee educational and occupational aspirations and how this translates into promoting or hindering certain integration paths. 29 refugees in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland were interviewed and asked about their educational and occupational aspirations. Three policies were identified as having an important influence on their aspirations formation namely, asylum policy, integration policy in addition to university access and degree recognition policy. Findings show that the three policies combined contribute to creating what I refer to as ‘Low Ambition Equilibrium’. This means that on one hand these policies promote the quickest and most accessible integration paths to reduce refugees’ dependence on the welfare state. On the other hand, the experience of forced migration combined with a ‘policy-dense’ environment create a lot of uncertainty in the life of refugees and the urgency to find a lost ‘normality’ at the expense of their aspirations.
Keywords: Refugee integration, Aspirations, Integration policy, Access to education, Labour market integration
Paper II: Tensions during the implementation of integration policy in Switzerland: The challenges surrounding “fast and sustainable” integration
Ihssane Otmani
Abstract: This paper explores the various tensions at play during the implementation of integration policy in Switzerland. Relying on the experiences and perceptions of 23 caseworkers and 29 refugees in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland, the article identifies important dynamics at play during the process of integration, namely, how the focus on quick labour market integration of refugees, shapes both refugees’ integration trajectories and social workers’ understanding of their role and function. Close attention was paid to the various tensions experienced by both parts during the implementation of integration policy and the challenges attached to the expectation of “fast” integration. Findings show that caseworkers are focused on attaining what it is referred to in this paper as “fast and sustainable integration” through promoting quick access to vocational training and employment. This is often a source of tension to both caseworkers who recognize the shortcoming of such approaches and refugees who either adapt to the expectation of “fast and sustainable integration” or rely on their own resources to gain support for their more ambitious projects.
Keywords: Integration, refugees, social workers, aspirations, labour market
Paper III : Do institutions matter for refugee integration? A comparison of case worker integration strategies in Switzerland and Canada
Ihssane Otmani and Giuliano Bonoli
In this paper we explore the extent to which differences in institutional settings, with a focus on the human capital formation regime, shape the integration trajectories proposed to recently-arrived refugees. To do so, we compare two countries, Switzerland and Canada, which are committed to implementing integration policy for refugees and belong to two different human capital formation regimes. We investigate whether ending up in a country with a collective skill formation system (Switzerland) limits refugee integration paths but “managing” their aspirations and directing them towards predefined options compared to a country with a more liberal human capital formation regime (Canada) where refugees may have more room of manoeuvre to fulfil their aspirations. In order to test this hypothesis, we used qualitative vignettes and compared integration paths proposed by case workers to refugees in a Swiss Canton (Vaud) and in a Canadian Province (Québec). We found that overall, the integration paths proposed are very similar, regardless of the institutional context. We reason that this largely unexpected result is due to the similarities in the overall orientation of integration policy; the similarity of the policy problem and labour market shortage in the low skill segment experienced in both countries.
Keywords: Refugees, Aspirations, Integration policy, education system, Street level bureaucrats