Highly skilled asylum seekers: Case studies of refugee students at a Swiss university

Abstract

The article argues that the applicability and value of “skills” depend to a considerable degree on the way in which a person enters a country. Based on a study on potential university students with refugee backgrounds, it shows how difficult it can be to transfer skills through the migration channel of asylum in Switzerland and how social and cultural capital may be reduced. The space in which asylum seekers live and operate is restricted in such intersecting fields as mobility, time, finances, languages, or access to information. In addition, the educational system has regulations regarding recognition. The article raises questions as to how education systems in the destination countries recognize, integrate and develop skills. It makes the case for re-assessing the very term “highly skilled”, along with the notions and associations that surround it, as an empirical object of research, rather than accepting it as a category in its own right.

Understanding access to the labour market through migration channels

“…Moreover, people fleeing their country are sometimes not able to take with them official documents attesting to their qualifications (Sontag 2018a); and even when they have these documents, the actors involved in assessing qualifications tend to attribute a lower value to qualifications originating from refugeeproducing countries (Sommer 2016). The delicate financial situation of refugees also makes it particularly difficult for them to validate their already acquired skills through additional training (Berthoud 2012), and the support structures available to them are rarely appropriate for highly educated people (Sontag 2018a, UNHCR 2014. Finally, people who have sought asylum in Switzerland are linked to a specific canton and are in principle not allowed to live elsewhere in the country or move abroad (Sontag 2018a).…”

“…The delicate financial situation of refugees also makes it particularly difficult for them to validate their already acquired skills through additional training (Berthoud 2012), and the support structures available to them are rarely appropriate for highly educated people (Sontag 2018a, UNHCR 2014. Finally, people who have sought asylum in Switzerland are linked to a specific canton and are in principle not allowed to live elsewhere in the country or move abroad (Sontag 2018a).…”

Unequal Access to Support and Privileges

“…Moreover, their precarious financial situations often prevent validation of their existing skills through additional training, since such processes can be expensive. 18 In this context, the support structures offered to asylum seekers and recognised refugees are rarely appropriate for highly educated people (Sandoz, 2016b;Sontag, 2018). A UNHCR study shows, for instance, that its interviewees were systematically directed towards low-paid professional sectors such as cleaning, personal care, hotel, and restaurant services regardless of their personal wishes, qualifications, and previous work experience (UNHCR, 2014).…”

“…Other categories have received less attention, even though they constitute an important share of international migration flows. Finally, although an increasing number of refugees arriving in Europe tend to have a high level of education (Sandoz, 2016b), refugees are rarely the focus of studies on highly skilled migration, nor are "highly skilled migrants" the focus of studies on asylum (Sontag, 2018). Yet I argue that a comparison of contrasting cases enables a better understanding of the way migration situations structure different opportunities and obstacles for individuals.…”

“…In Switzerland, the exam that enables recognition of a foreign high school diploma costs about CHF 1000 (EUR 880) and additional preparatory courses for this exam are only offered in select cities(Sontag, 2018).…”