University of Sanctuary
In September 2019, St Andrews became the second University of Sanctuary in Scotland, in recognition of our commitment to ensuring St Andrews is a welcoming, safe and supportive environment for scholars and students seeking sanctuary in the UK.
A celebration event was held in March 2020 to officially award University of Sanctuary status to St Andrews.
There are three guiding principles that underpin the commitment to becoming a University of Sanctuary. These principles align closely with the values of the University of St Andrews, as our Principal, Prof Dame Sally Mapstone notes:
“The concept of sanctuary resonates deeply, embodying a profound sense of refuge, protection, and inclusivity. It speaks to our collective social responsibility to safeguard the dignity and rights of all individuals, regardless of background, status and circumstance. When St Andrews became the second University of Sanctuary in Scotland in 2019, it marked a significant milestone in our institution’s journey towards fostering a welcoming, safe, and supportive environment for scholars and students seeking sanctuary within the UK. We recognize the transformative power that education has in overcoming adversity and building brighter futures for individuals and communities alike.”
The three guiding principles are:
Learn: learning about what it means to be seeking sanctuary, both in general (for the community in which the university is situated), and specifically (in the context of HE and the campus environment).
Embed: taking positive action to embed concepts of welcome, safety and inclusion within the institution including, but not limited to, the student body, students' union, departments, faculties, senior management, administrative and campus management staff. To take steps to ensure this progress outlasts the current student population.
Share: sharing vision, achievements, what we have learned, and good practice with other universities, the local community and beyond.
Find out more about the University of Sanctuary Award
Sanctuary Scholarships
The St Andrews Sanctuary Scholarship supports undergraduate and postgraduate applicants who are seeking sanctuary in the UK. At University of St Andrews, asylum seeker applicants are classed for Home fee status.
Sanctuary scholarship
St Andrews is committed to attracting the very best students, and to providing a safe, welcoming and inclusive environment for everyone in our community. The University is pleased to offer a Sanctuary Scholarship, specifically designed to support undergraduate and postgraduate applicants who are seeking sanctuary in the UK.
Up to 10 scholarships are available for UG, PGT and PGR. Applicants interested in applying can find more information on the Sanctuary Scholarship page.
Online Sanctuary Scholarship for MSc TESOL
This award covers all tuition costs for an online MSc TESOL programme (including MSc TESOL with a specialism) at the University of St Andrews. More information can be found on our Scholarships pages.
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September 2019: University of St Andrews became a University of Sanctuary.
November 2019: Sanctuary Operation group was created.
March 2020: A celebration event was held to award University of Sanctuary status to St Andrews.
September 2020: University of St Andrews welcomed first cohort of Sanctuary Scholarship students.
September 2021: University of St Andrews offered a new long-distance learning Sanctuary scholarship for MSc TESOL.
October 2021: Sanctuary led a SaintsFunder campaign to host an academic from Afghanistan and their dependents. The campaign raised £10,930.
2022: University of St Andrews started Twinning program with Ostroh Academy-Ukraine.
2022: University of St Andrews hosted five Ukrainian scholars.
March 2022: University of St Andrews organised Sanctuary celebration week.
October 2023: University of St Andrews created a new dedicated position to support Sanctuary scholars, engagement and initiatives.
October 2024: University of St Andrews hosted CARA information session.
March 2025: University of St Andrews celebrated five years of Sanctuary.
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Students can find more information on what to do once you arrive in St Andrews.
Current students who have been awarded a University of St Andrews Sanctuary Scholarship can contact the Global Office at sanctuary@st-andrews.ac.uk with any queries.
The Global Office holds weekly student consultation hours on Monday from 14:00-16:00 during the academic year. Please book a virtual appointment if you would like to chat with a member of the Global Office team.
To learn more about supported pathways for studying at St Andrews, please visit the access and outreach page and Student Services.
Global Office (Sanctuary Support Officer)
University of St Andrews has invested in a new Sanctuary and Scholarship Support Officer role. The Sanctuary Officer helps students address accommodation, financial, academic, and health challenges. Additionally, the officer plays a key role in collaborating with other Sanctuary universities to achieve the organization's strategic goals. Moreover, the officer takes the lead in planning, organizing, and promoting Sanctuary-related celebration events which aim at enhancing Sanctuary student involvement in the community and fostering a sense of belonging among other Sanctuary students and staff members.
Employability Bursary
Current Sanctuary scholars are eligible to apply for The Employability Bursary. The Employability Bursary helps students complete work-related activity. Students can get up to £1200, or £2000 if they meet certain criteria.
The Careers Centre reviews applications in the order they are submitted. Students can ask a question about the Employability Bursary through CareerConnect.
Volunteering
There are plenty of great opportunities available for volunteering for Sanctuary scholars. A good place to start is Community Connections, which highlights a range of local groups and initiatives – many of which rely on volunteers to support their work. We encourage you to explore the options and get in touch with organisations directly to find out how you can help. Also, St Andrews Voluntary Service (SVS) connects University students and staff with meaningful volunteering opportunities, fostering a spirit of service and community engagement
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Sanctuary Operation Group
The Sanctuary Operations Group was established in 2019. It brings together key colleagues from around the University to co-ordinate and support activities in relation to our University of Sanctuary status.
The objectives of the Sanctuary Operations Group are to:
- Co-ordinate relevant information sessions/ training for staff and students on what it means to be a University of Sanctuary and issues related to the provision of support for Sanctuary scholars.
- Promote and support Sanctuary events at the University, liaising with the Students’ Association, local community and external stakeholders.
- Maintain an oversight of legislation and policy in this area and the implications for St Andrews and our communities, and make recommendations to the Principal’s Office as appropriate.
- Support the University’s membership of the Council for At-Risk Academics (Cara).
- Review feedback from Sanctuary scholars and enhance their welcome and experience at St Andrews wherever possible.
- Maintain an oversight of the scholarship provision and support arrangements for Sanctuary scholars and seek external support for Sanctuary initiatives.
- Ensure news about related research, teaching and other initiatives are communicated internally and externally as appropriate.
For further information about the Group and how you can support Sanctuary activities, please contact the Global Office.
Sanctuary Microsoft Teams special interest group
Joining the Sanctuary Microsoft Interest Group allows staff to connect with others who are interested in or involved with sanctuary initiatives, share ideas, and stay updated on relevant activities and discussions. To become a member, please email sanctuary@st-andrews.ac.uk.
Global Office Newsletter
The Global Office newsletter is a great way to stay informed about upcoming events, initiatives, and opportunities related to sanctuary at the university.
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University of St Andrews Refugee and Forced Mobility Network
The aims of the network are developing university strategy and policy for academics at risk (in the broadest sense) and providing a resource hub for current support, projects, research and teaching relating to refugees and forced mobility.
Refugee Action St Andrews (RASA)
It aims to show solidarity with, and provide support to, refugees and migrants all over the world.
It is a third sector, leading, high quality, people-led charity committed to working with partners and migrant/refugee communities by providing holistic, professional, and high-quality services across Fife.
Fife Voluntary Action (FVA) is the third sector interface for the Fife Council area. FVA is an independent charity that supports, develops and represents community groups, voluntary organisations, social enterprises and volunteering.
Fife Center for Equalities (FCE)
Fife Centre for Equalities (FCE) is a local charity funded by Fife Council with the charitable aims of raising awareness and understanding of equality and diversity across all communities and community groups in Fife.
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We host annual Sanctuary Lectures that are free and open to the public and to all members of our community. Recent lectures about Sanctuary issues include:
Sanctuary lecture 2025: Jen Stout’s lecture
Sanctuary lecture 2024: Dr Dina Nayeri's lecture
Sanctuary lecture 2023: Roza Salih’s lecture
Sanctuary lecture 2022: Professor Rebecca Sweetman and Dr Natasha Saunders’ lecture
To learn more about upcoming Sanctuary Lectures, email sanctuary@st-andrews.ac.uk.
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University of St Andrews has a longstanding tradition of responding to humanitarian crises by offering sanctuary and support to scholars at risk. From sheltering academics fleeing Nazi persecution in the 1930s to welcoming displaced scholars from Syria, Afghanistan, Ukraine, and Palestine today. The university continues to demonstrate a deep commitment to academic freedom and human dignity.
Council for At-Risk Academics (CARA)
We are proud to be a supporter of the Council for At-Risk Academics (CARA). Our work continues via their Researchers at Risk Fellowships, which are being organised in association with the UK National Academies. The University offers Cara Postdoc Fellowships where academics are hosted for two years as visiting researchers. The academics enter different Colleges and are appointed a supervisor for the duration of their stay. Since 2021, the university has hosted three CARA scholars. We have recently held a CARA networking event at St Andrews, hosted by our Principal, Prof Dame Sally Mapstone, with participation from the Senior Management team at CARA, and staff and students from across faculties.
The Linda Norgrove Foundation
To support female medical students barred by the Taliban from completing their university studies, St Andrews is collaborating with the Linda Norgrove Foundation to host three pre-medical students at our University. Allowing female medical students to pursue their studies can have a huge and long-lasting impact, reducing mortality, particularly for women and newborns.
St Andrews Education for Palestinian Students (STEPS)
St Andrews Education for Palestinian Students (STEPS) was established in January 2011 as an independent charitable foundation to provide funding for Palestinian students at the University of St Andrews.
This scholarship, co-funded by STEPS and the University of St Andrews, will provide funding for up to two Palestinian students to undertake a one-year postgraduate course of study.
Applicants interested in applying to STEPS can find out more information on our Scholarship pages.
The Higher Education Scholarships for Palestinians (HESPAL)
The Higher Education Scholarships for Palestinians (HESPAL) is a UK scholarship programme developed in partnership with Palestinian universities to strengthen the Palestinian higher education sector, responding to its needs and priorities.
Given the challenging circumstances in Palestine, particularly in Gaza, the need for support for Palestinian academics is more critical than ever. This scholarship aims to foster collaborations between the University of St Andrews and Palestinian universities.
The British Council Palestine and the University of St Andrews have an agreement to jointly support up to two postgraduate taught degree HESPAL scholarships per year for three years starting from 2024.
Full details can be found on the British Council website.
Ukraine
In response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the University of St Andrews has actively participated in the UK-Ukraine Twinning program with the National University of Ostroh Academy. The Twinning scheme was developed to help maintain the integrity of the Ukrainian HE sector, prevent brain drain, help institutions build resources, skills and international partnerships, and enable short-term and long-term activities that sustain and rebuild Ukraine’s universities, economy and society.
School of Modern Languages was granted a successful UK-Ukraine R&I Twinning Grant project entitled “An Ostroh Academy-University of St Andrews Partnership for Advancing the Public Humanities” (2023) in collaboration with colleagues at Ostroh. More information can be found on our Ukraine-St Andrews twinning page.
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Sanctuary scholar (PGR): International Relations
Being admitted to the University of St Andrews represents a significant academic opportunity – one that allows me to contribute meaningfully to a world-class research community. With a background in human rights and policy analysis, I bring over a decade of professional and research experience to my current doctoral work in International Relations. My academic journey continues to be shaped by a commitment to critical global issues and evidence-based scholarship.
The Sanctuary Scholarship provides essential support for pursuing advanced academic research that is often challenging to finance through standard routes. It grants me the opportunity to study under the guidance of internationally recognised scholars, use vital academic resources, and dedicate myself to developing original and policy-relevant research. My work explores online social mobilisation from an international relations perspective, with particular focus on social mobilisation online and digital authoritarianism in post-Soviet societies.
This scholarship has supported concrete academic outcomes and allowed me to co-author and publish a peer-reviewed journal article on the agency of small states within multilateral alliances, present at academic conferences, and contribute to annual Freedom on the Net reports on Central Asia. I have also shared my knowledge by tutoring undergraduate modules and engaging in interdisciplinary academic collaboration at the University of St Andrews, improving both my teaching and research skills.
My experience at university has included rigorous academic training, cross-disciplinary engagement, and sincere support from colleagues. It has sharpened my long-term goals, broadened my academic perspective, and strengthened my dedication to research that informs policy and promotes democratic governance. With this opportunity, I envision a future grounded in research, education, and civic involvement. I remain committed to producing knowledge and advancing solutions to some of today’s most urgent global challenges.
Sanctuary scholar (PGR): International Relations
For me, being accepted to university wasn’t just about education — it was about reclaiming a dream I feared might never come true. I have always wanted to pursue a PhD, to feel empowered to carry out research in areas I am passionate about. I want to contribute to better access to education and meaningful research that speaks to the realities of war-torn communities.
The Sanctuary Scholarship arrived at a moment when life had reached a critical turning point. My family and I faced serious risks and couldn’t return home. At that point, the idea of continuing my education felt almost impossible. This scholarship wasn’t just a financial lifeline — it was a light in the darkness. It allowed me to find stability, focus on my research, and begin building a path forward. What stands out most is the holistic nature of the support. From covering rent to providing a gym membership for mental and physical wellbeing, it’s not just about funding studies — it’s about restoring a sense of normalcy and belonging. It’s about being seen and supported as a whole person.
Since arriving at the university, I’ve felt genuinely cared for. The community is warm, the support is ongoing, and the environment allows me to thrive both academically and personally. I’ve even started working on my long-term vision of creating a research centre dedicated to the issues that matter most to me — issues that have shaped my life and continue to shape the lives of so many others.
To anyone wondering whether to apply for this scholarship: please do. It could be the start of something transformational. And to those in a position to support displaced students — your help creates more than opportunity. It creates hope. It rebuilds lives. This scholarship gave me space to breathe, to think, and to begin again. And for that, I will always be grateful.
Sanctuary scholar (UG): International Relations and Modern History
When St Andrews Scholarship Initiative opened its doors for me, I was invited not only into the corridors of learning but into an entirely new social community. Through dialogues, reminiscent of Socratic teachings, in History and International Relations, I discovered that my own story—of, loss and reinvention—was both a source of strength and a lens through which I could engage my peers in rigorous debate about power, identity, and justice. “History does not repeat itself, but it often rhymes”, we reminded one another, drawing strength and valuable lessons from the past to emulate a more cohesive, a more just and peaceful world of enhanced human capital and endless potential, alongside self-belief and gratitude.
Beyond the classroom, inclusion in the executive committee of the Political Institute of Action and Research allowed me to co‑design workshops on civic participation, refugee rights, and global governance. Here, I learned that true integration demands more than academic credentials: it requires genuine social belonging. By collaborating on organizing speaker panels—and hearing the voices of activists alongside senior social workers and diplomats—we forged bonds of solidarity that transcended borders.
In combining scholarship with community, and mentorship with enterprise, these initiatives do more than alleviate immediate hardship: they cultivate agents of change. As a student here, I am gaining not only knowledge but networks, confidence, and a profound commitment to democratic participation. When displaced people are invited—through the generosity of scholarships—to claim their seat at the table, they carry with them new perspectives that enrich academic discourse, invigorate civic life, and spur sustainable growth. As someone whose journey began in uncertainty, I have seen how one act of generosity can ripple outward, transforming recipients into changemakers, and refugees into architects of a brighter, more inclusive future. That is the true promise, and a lasting, invaluable legacy, of initiatives like the St Andrews Scholarship.
Sanctuary scholar (PGR): Cancer Biology
I am currently pursuing a PhD in Medicine at the University of St Andrews. My journey began in Damascus, Syria, where I studied Medicine and built the foundation of my academic and professional aspirations. However, due to the conflict, I was forced to leave everything behind and start over in a new country.
Relocating to Scotland was both a challenge and a turning point in my life. Adjusting to a new culture, language, and system was difficult, but I remained determined to continue my medical journey. Being accepted at St Andrews was a dream come true, and receiving the Sanctuary Scholarship made it possible. The scholarship not only removed financial barriers — covering both tuition fees and living costs — but also provided a supportive academic environment that helped me settle, grow, and succeed.
This opportunity has restored my confidence and given me a renewed sense of purpose. My goal is to contribute meaningfully to the field of medicine and to give back to the community that welcomed me. I hope my story encourages others from displaced backgrounds to pursue their ambitions and reminds those in a position to help just how life changing their support can be.
CARA visiting research fellow: Biology
As a Visiting Research Fellow at the University of St Andrews, a premier world-leading academic institution, I am engaged in cutting-edge research and lab experiments in the field of cell and molecular sciences. This experience has equipped me with advanced, up-to-date knowledge and skills in plant molecular sciences and has provided me with invaluable experiences and unforgettable memories. The university nestles in a tranquil town, amidst historic and ancient sites, offering some of the most stunning countryside views in Scotland. It is spearheaded by world-leader academics, warm-hearted and compassionate administrative teams that have enriched me with lifelong memories. I am especially grateful for the prompt and exceptional support from the university’s Global Office.
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The University of St Andrews’ active involvement in responding to humanitarian crises, forced displacement, and the lived experiences of those affected by conflict can be demonstrated by a range of projects:
The Waiting Place project
In her nonfiction children’s book The Waiting Place (2022), writer, former refugee and reader at University of St Andrews Dina Nayeri follows ten refugee children from Iran and Afghanistan. The children live in refugee camp in Greece. The book teaches young people about the nature of home and safety. The book was a finalist for The Boston Globe-Horn book award for children nonfiction.
Thanks to funding from University of St Andrews, the project managed to send 5800 copies of the book to schools across the UK. Schools also received copies of the official UK discussion guide. Teachers used the guide to connect the Waiting Place to existing curriculum requirements.
5am. 24.02.2022. Testimonies from the War
Two residential fellows from Ostroh contributed specialist expertise and interviewing to the “5am. 24.02.2022. Testimonies from the War” project, a Europe-wide public history consortium to document the forced displacement of Ukrainians following the full-scale invasion.
City in the Suitcase
This is a collaboration and co-production work between University of St Andrews, Center for Urban History in Lviv, and Ostroh Academy on digital archive and capacity building. “City in a Suitcase” document displaced heritage from the occupied and destroyed territories.
Visualising War and Peace
Visualising War and Peace brings together a wide range of Humanities and Social Science scholars, applying methodologies from Art History, Classics, Film Studies, History, International Relations and Psychology. In studying interplay between narratives from many different periods and places, the project hopes to gain new insight not only into depictions of war in individual works but also into the development of discourse of war as complex, boundary-crossing networks of ideas.
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New Scots refugee integration strategy 2024
A strategy supporting the integration of refugees, people seeking asylum and other forced migrants within Scotland’s communities.
City of Sanctuary: Start having courageous conversations about refugee rights
This conversation guide will teach you how to Affectively respond to misinformation, share stories which change perspectives, and bridge divides and make connections.
City of Sanctuary: Guide to use of language
This guide can be used by anyone supporting our vision of welcome and sanctuary for all to make people seeking sanctuary feel included in all our activities including decision making.
City of Sanctuary: Guidance for welcoming a person with lived experience to speak
This guidance has been developed to ensure that invitations for people with lived experience to speak are positive and constructive experiences for all those involved.
My name is Sally Mapstone; Principal, and Vice Chancellor of the University of St Andrews. I am pleased to greet you from the University of St Andrews; a university whose Principal and Vice Chancellor Sir James Colquhoun Irvine was among the signatories of the founding statement of the Academic Assistance Council now known as the Council for at Risk Academics in 1933.
The University of St Andrews has a long history of offering sanctuary to scholars in times of crisis. In the 1930s, Principal Irvine welcomed Otto Skutsch; a classicist who left Germany during the rise of the Nazi party.
Professor Skutsch worked as a research assistant in our School of Classics before eventually going on to become Professor of Latin at University College London from 1951 to 1972.
Principal Irvine also gave sanctuary to other European scholars such as Erwin Freundlich, who had worked with Albert Einstein. Freundlich arrived in St Andrews in 1939 and became the university’s first Napier professor of astronomy in 1951.
The welcoming spirit of St Andrews extends far beyond Principal Irvine. In 1934, Professor Walter Ledermann, a mathematician, left Germany, having obtained a scholarship through the International Student Service at Geneva that allowed him to pursue a doctorate in St Andrews.
This scholarship was made possible by the university students and the town citizens who had gathered counting to support the living cost of those who had fled persecution. Ledermann wrote ‘it is no exaggeration that I owe my life to the citizens and students of St Andrews ‘.
In more recent times, as a member of CARA and as a University of Sanctuary, St Andrews has had the privilege to welcome a number of CARA fellows and their families. We are currently hosting three CARA fellows, including one PhD student and two academics. Colleagues at the University also involved in the mentoring of academics in exile through the CARA-Syria program.
I would like to thank CARA for its excellent guidance in arranging the placement of CARA fellows at St Andrews. We are also grateful to Ziad Al Bayati; Deputy Director and Fellowship Program Manager at CARA, who joined our sanctuary celebration week in March 2022, and provided invaluable guidance on how universities could support those affected by the war in Ukraine.
Our university community is committed to supporting at risk and displaced scholars and we will always do our very best to come together swiftly and passionately to support those affected by international crises, most recently, the Afghan crisis and the war in Ukraine.
So thank you again for joining the CARA of Scotland conference 2023, and for being part of the opportunity to recognise the support which CARA is vital service, and the institutions within it have provided and are providing.
Research and teaching
There is a broad range of research and teaching related to forced migration and/or (forced) migrants being carried out at the University. Examples are detailed below.
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Professor, School of Modern Languages
Research interests: Industrial history and heritage of the Ukrainian East, also known as Donbas, questions of heritage management and manipulation and the role of the industrial past in forming community identities and politics.
Research projects: led several collaborative research projects with partners in Ukraine, including “De-industrialisation and Conflict in Donbas: Capacity building in Ukraine to make Donbas (mono)towns inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable,” (Global Challenges Research Fund, 2018-19) “Un/archiving Post/industry: Engaging Heritage and Developing Cultural Infrastructures,” (Global Challenges Research Fund and House of Europe, 2019-20), and “Donbas in Focus: Visions of Industry from the Ukrainian East” (Arts and Humanities Research Council, 2021-23). I am currently joint PI on the “Ostroh Academy/University of St Andrews Partnership for Advancing the Public Humanities” funded by UUKi
Find out more about Professor Victoria Donovan.
Email: vsd2@st-andrews.ac.uk
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Senior lecturer, School of Modern Languages
Research interests: transnational and multilingual interactions between English, Polish, Ukrainian, Yiddish and Russian language cultures, and intersections between global science fiction, exoplanet science, and space policy
Research projects: currently holds a St Andrews-Emory Collaborative grant for a project researching multilingual children’s print culture of Ukraine and am joint PI on the Ostroh Academy/University of St Andrews Partnership for Advancing the Public Humanities funded by UUKi.
Find out more about Dr Emily Finer
Email: ef50@st-andrews.ac.uk
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Honorary Professor, School of History
Research interests: interwar, activism, communities and identity.
Research projects: leads the Roma Interbellum’ ERC project, investigating the history and projects of Roma people in Central and Eastern Europe between the wars. The Roma Interbellum project team includes two Ukrainian researchers, one of whom works at the Babi Yar museum in Kyiv. This Holocaust site was damaged by aerial bombing. Professor Marushiakova-Popova has also recently contributed to developments around the introduction of the Romani language at Ukrainian schools.
Find out more about Professor Elena Andreevna Marushiakova-Popova
Email: emp9@st-andrews.ac.uk
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PhD student
Research interests: diaspora politics, humantriansm, activism, IDPs and transnational solidarity, the political economy of Diaspora, forced/involuntary migration and displacement.
Research projects: Ph.D. Fellow @Center for Syrian Studies, and Sanctuary/Cara funded scholar. My Ph.D. research is focused on diaspora politics in conflict settings, humantriansm, activism, IDPs and transnational solidarity, the political economy of the Syrian Diaspora, its historical evolution, and the formation of the political diaspora. Part of the research is on forced/involuntary migration and displacement before and after 2011 in Syria. I'm involved in several projects and research on migration and protection in Syria, Iraq, and other fragile states in the MENA region. Founding member of the Syrian Academics Network in the UK & fellow at the Syrian Center for Policy Research (Beirut)
Research Centres/Institutes: Center for Syrian Studies
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Lecturer in Latin American Studies, School of Modern Languages
Research interests: Cultural representations of the Mexico-USA border; contemporary Latin American literature (representations of migration, exile, other displacements); travel writing; testimonial literature; women travellers and writers; women's autofiction; literary journalism and Hispanic media
Research projects: My current research focuses on Latin American women travellers and writers, from the 1960s onwards. It departs from the exploration of the role of memory and imagination within the context of the social revolutions, particularly in Central America and the Caribbean.
Research Centres/Institutes: Centre for Amerindian Studies (CAS)
Teaching: SP4020 Women in motion: Gender and mobilities in Latin American contemporary literature
Find out more about Dr Liliana Chávez-Díaz
Email: lgcd1@st-andrews.ac.uk
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Lecturer in Social Anthropology, Department of Social Anthropology
Research: My research focuses on Latin American migration, gender and social inequality. I have studied Latin American diasporas in different countries in order to understand political and ethical responses to structural inequality. I am interested in showing how various social, gendered, ethical and cultural practices inform those responses which often facilitate methods and strategies of coping and persevering. My work has focused on the analysis of care and ethics in different settings. My doctoral work included the analysis of Latin American women’s lives while working as domestic and sex workers in London. Here is studied how socio-economic conditions, violence and structural inequality push migrants to move from the Global South to the Global North. I then broaden the field of my research, still with a strong focus on care, inequality and migration while studying an anti-eviction social movement in Madrid. I have also been involved in a project concerned with inequality, care and cooperation among Hispanic migrants in Tulsa, Oklahoma. My various field sites offer a comparative approach to the study of migration and people’s (particularly women) efforts and abilities to create possibilities for themselves in the face of precarious realities. My lens on care and ethics has illuminated everyday day practices of resistance but also structural conditions of inequality.
Teaching: While working as a lecture in Oxford University I taught a course for the MSc in Migration Studies and the MSc in Anthropology titled Intersectionalites: gender, sexuality, race and mobility. The course begins by providing students with a theoretical grounding in the literature on gender and migration and the ways in which the state, work, family as well as intersectional identities shape gender. It explores the links that exist between these analytical categories through an anthropological analysis of intimate labour markets, legal statuses, middle-class migrations, love and romance, queer migrations and masculinities. The course engages with postcolonial, queer and race studies in order to approach the study of gender and migration in a critical way. Adopting a comparative approach, this course draws on ethnographic examples from various regions in the developed and the developing world.
I am the director of CAS (Centre for Amerindian and Latin American Studies) and I will be leading a seminar series on Race and Racism in Latin America during the next academic year with the participation of scholars from various parts of the world.
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Professor of French and African Studies, School of Modern Languages
Research interests: Francophone Africa; genocide; Rwanda; literature and testmionies; colonial métis; postcolonialism; decoloniality
Research projects: Currently working on stories of colonial Métis (children born of Belgian colonial men and Rwandan women) who were forcibly removed to Belgium in 1950s and put up for adoption.
Find out more about Professor Nicki Hitchcott.
Email: nmh2@st-andrews.ac.uk
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Senior Lecturer, School of Classics
Research interests: Visualising War and Peace (including forced migration, as a legacy of conflict.
Research projects: With funding from Imperial War Museums, I have been running a project on Visualising Forced Migration. This has involved: commissioning artist Diana Forster to create a brand new artwork, recounting a historic forced migration during WWII, with the aim of generating conversation about past and present displacement and refugee experiences; I have also been gathering stories of forced migration from antiquity to the present day (via interviews, blogs, podcasts) which we feature on our website; additionally, I have interviewed a range of artists, photographers, linguists, writers etc about habits of representing forced migration in different media. Our art exhibition is at Kirkcaldy Galleries from 4th Feb to 14th May 2023, then it transfers to the Wardlaw Museum from 25th May 2023 until 7th Jan 2024. We are exploring other venues after that date.
Find out more about Dr Alice König
Email: arw6@st-andrews.ac.uk
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Professor, School of Geography and Sustainable Development
Research interests: demography, migration, fertility, immigrants, descendants, life-course
Research projects: MigrantLife project (2019–2024) Understanding Life Trajectories of Immigrants and Their Descendants in Europe and Projecting Future Trends. This project investigates how employment, housing and family trajectories evolve and interact in the lives of immigrants and their descendants in the UK, France, Germany and Sweden; and how factors related to a societal context, an early life context and critical transitions shape their life histories. The study will project their future life trajectories using innovative computer simulation techniques, considering the main life domains and diversity between and within immigrant groups. The project will exploit large-scale longitudinal data from the four countries to deepen our understanding of the relationships between the three life domains, and the causes of less and more successful life trajectories among immigrants and their descendants. This project will show whether the current heterogeneity between and within immigrant and minority groups vanishes over time or rather persists, suggesting an increasing diversity of European societies.
Find out more about Professor Hill Kulu.
Email: hill.kulu@st-andrews.ac.uk
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Learning and Engagement Manager, Libraries and Museums
Research interests: Social integration, wellbeing
Research projects: Common Ground - a project that partners with Fife Council's ESOL department, pairing ESOL learners of migrant and refugee backgrounds with secondary school pupils from SIMD40 postcodes to create an exhibition in the Wardlaw Museum. Focused on wellbeing, social integration and skills development. Currently funded by Museums Galleries Scotland.
Email: erml@st-andrews.ac.uk
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Professor, School of Modern Languages
Research interests: Chinese diaspora, postcolonialism, decoloniality, migration, forced repatriation, asylum seekers
Research projects: My book 第八位中國商人同消失咗嘅海員/The Eighth Chinese Merchant and the Disappeared Seamen published in August 2022 was the result of long and in-depth research into the 1945-1947 forced repatriation of Chinese seamen from the UK. I am currently interested in the integration of BN(O) visa scheme migrants from Hong Kong, and mainland Chinese asylum seekers who seek to remain in the UK.
Teaching: CN5004 Cultural Expression in the Chinese Diaspora
Other initiatives: Collaboration with Migration Policy Scotland – Participant: MPS Event: Hong Kongers in Scotland, 10 March 2023. Moderator, University of St-Andrews Future Scotland Series Public Forum – Hong Kong Migrants in Scotland: Opportunities and Challenges, 9th March. Expert for Chinese asylum speaker appeal against Home Office refusal of permission to remain; the appellant is in danger of religious persecution if returned to China (February-March 2023).
Find out more about Professor Gregory Lee
Email: gbl1@st-andrews.ac.uk
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Senior Lecturer, School of International Relations
Research interests: Activism, active citizenship, participatory research with asylum seekers and refugees
Research projects: In collaboration with Cara, set up the Sanctuary programme, including the Sanctuary Fellowship, at Lancaster University before coming to St Andrews (see: https://www.lancaster.ac.uk/giving/lancaster-sanctuary-fellowship/). Co-developed Mobilise! an online active citizenship course with asylum seekers and refugees, which aimed to develop confidence and skills in engaging social and political life (see: https://www.rememberingresistance.com/mobilise.html). Learning resources drew on materials collected in a previous project on social movements in the region (see www.rememberingresistance.com). The course has been run by a number of community organisations working with AS&R in Lancaster and Sheffield.
Find out more about Dr Sarah Marsden.
Email: sm992@st-andrews.ac.uk
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Senior Lecturer, School of International Relations
Dr Fiona McCallum Guiney is Senior Lecturer in the School of International Relations. She is trained as a political scientist and is a specialist on Middle Eastern Christianity. Dr McCallum Guiney led an interdisciplinary project entitled ‘Defining and Identifying Middle Eastern Christian Communities in Europe’ (DIMECCE) 2013-16. With partners from Denmark, Poland and Belgium, the project was awarded a grant of 785,851 Euros from the Humanities in the European Research Area (HERA). Using the case studies of the Coptic Orthodox, Assyrians/Syriacs and Iraqi Christians in the UK, Denmark and Sweden, the project explored the internal dynamics of these communities, engagement with wider society and transnational interactions especially with Middle Eastern countries. The project team worked with government agencies and non-state actors working with migrants and refugees. For more information, see the project website.
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Senior Lecturer, Geography and Sustainable Development
Research interests: migration
Research projects: I have previously been involved on research on climate change and forced migration.
Teaching: GG3234 Migration & Transnationalism
Find out more about Dr David McCollum
Email: dm82@St-andrews.ac.uk
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Senior Lecturer, Department of Social Anthropology
Stavroula Pipyrou is a Social Anthropologist working on minority politics, particularly among the Grecanici – a Greek linguistic minority in South Italy who trace their roots back to antiquity. Her monograph “The Grecanici of Southern Italy: Governance, Violence, and Minority Politics (2016) is the first Anglophone study of the minority. She pioneered a theory of “Fearless Governance” that describes overlapping and contradictory systems of power and authority that enable the Grecanici to achieve political representation through the EU and UNESCO, state policy, civic associations and family networks. Leading from her interest in how political anthropology captures the lived-experience of minorities, she has completed an innovative mixed-method project on the long-term impacts of child displacement in South Italy. After floods in 1951/53, children were deliberately displaced by organisations on both the Left and the Right to other parts of Italy. This story, largely absent from Italian history textbooks, has led to an influential theory of how violence is inherent in humanitarian processes. In subsequent publications, she argues that silences associated with child-displacement are directly related to Cold War politics in Italy and beyond and build the political structure of the European project. Stavroula is the founding director of the Center for Minorities Research.
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Lecturer, School of International Relations
Research interests: postcolonial, marxist and queer theory; activism around gender, sexuality, race, class, caste
Teaching: IR4579: Race, Caste and the Making of the Modern World; IR5417: Political Theory of Race and Caste
Find out more about Dr Rahul Rao
Email: rr213@st-andrews.ac.uk
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Reader, School of English
Research interests: Old English language and literature, source study, early medieval literary history, Academic English
Research projects: I've been working as a mentor for Cara, the Council for At-Risk Academics. My mentee and I, plus three other senior academics, organised a webinar for Cara this month. The topic was Academic English and it addressed the language problems that academics in risk areas face in their teaching and publishing, if English is not their first language. I would be very interested to continue my work on Academic English and my work for Cara, and would love to hear from anyone who'd like to collaborate on this or similar enterprises. I'd also love to meet other Cara mentors who are based at the University of St Andrews or in Scotland. My webinar was attended by some 60 academics (junior and senior), mainly from the Middle East and Eastern Europe. For more information on Cara, see www.cara.ngo; my mentee is a senior academic at the University of Thamar, Yemen.
Find out more about Dr Christine Rauer
Email: cr30@st-andrews.ac.uk
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Lecturer, School of International Relations
Research interests: Forced Migration; Borders; Activism; Digital Technology
Research projects: Refugee and Asylum Seeker Activism in Scotland, 1999-Present, funded by the Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland. This project sought to catalogue the activism of refugees and asylum seekers in Scotland since the introduction of the asylum dispersal system in 1999, and understand the forms that such activism takes, and the issues around which such activism centres. My current research project examines the proliferation of digital border control technology, and focuses on the ethical challenges that they pose.
Teaching: IR3204 Migration in Global Politics: Ethics, Politics and Practice; IR3065 Refugees and International Relations; IR5046 Migration and Political Theory.
Find out more about Dr Natasha Saunders
Email: negs@St-andrews.ac.uk
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Associate Lecturer, School of International Relations
Research interests: Multi-displacement; resistance and activism; diasporic resistance, and transnational solidarity
Research projects: I recently completed an enterprenurial project that supported refugee youths with tailored mentorship to contribute to their health-related projects: https://cpcs.wp.st-andrews.ac.uk/research/refugee-entrepreneurial-fund/. This year, I am working with Syrian/Palestinian multi-displaced/refugee communities in the Middle East, as part of a larger project that studies contribution to peacebuilding in their host communities.
Find out more about Dr Malaka Shwaikh
Email: mmbs1@st-andrews.ac.uk
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Senior Lecturer, Department of Social Anthropology
Research interest: Recently I have been involved with a team working on the Windrush scandal, hence forced migration of black UK citizens to the Caribbean. I have also worked on court cases from Caribbean citizens seeking refugee status in the UK.
Teaching: I teach on the Caribbean, on cosmopolitanism/cosmopolitics and topics around perception/communication.
Other initiatives: I have written and co-written multiple region-expert reports on migration for appellants taking cases to tribunals and courts in the UK.
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PhD student, School of International Relations
Research interests: China's foreign policy; Rohingya refugees' protection; Sino-Myanmar relations
Research projects: My PhD project focused on how China engaged with the global refugee protection regime, with one in-depth case study of its engagement in the voluntary repatriation of the Rohingya refugees. I adopt norm contestation theory to explain how China influenced refugee protection norms. I use extensive elite interviews with Rohingya refugees, Chinese academics and UN officials to collect and analyze primary data.
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The Centre for Minorities Research is an interdisciplinary platform that examines how axes of class, race/ethnicity, gender, generation, nationality, religion, and sexuality work together to inform the experiences of minorities. Cutting across disciplines in the social sciences and humanities, the CMR pursues applied research on the political and social struggles of minority groups, the economic and labour market consequences of increasing diversity, and the governance and management of minorities. Understanding multicultural futures will be a central concern for governments, international organisations, academic institutions, and the general public in the coming years. The CMR provides a platform for sustainable research, networking and impact activities and a forum for outreach discussion that gets to the heart of complex questions concerning minority representation.
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The Centre for the Critical Reimagining of Human Rights is dedicated to the exploration and support of such rational and creative efforts. In the face of increasing opposition to the language and practice of human rights, the Centre is committed to their ongoing critical re-imagining as a means of renewing and further expanding them.
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The Radical Urban lab strives for a radical re-imagining of the entire academic knowledge production process that includes how, why and for whom this knowledge is produced. The urban is an even more crucial field of study: its reach simultaneously extends and contracts, producing new divides, inequalities and opportunities along the way.