MRes Scholarship: An investigation into the barriers to education, employment and language instruction experienced by new migrants in convergence areas

To view full details of this project please visit: http://kess2.ac.uk/20823-2/

Here is an exciting opportunity to study English as a Second Language (ESOL) organisation in Wales which could lead to entirely new approaches in how language provision is organised and delivered.

This is a funded MRes, including a generous stipend and tuition fees, with well-resourced circumstances for a successful scholarship.

The selected candidate will apply their ESOL skills and ambition to researching the issues surrounding ESOL, refugee integration and access to education and employment. This educational opportunity, will allow the student to develop transferable knowledge and skills in this most exciting and active field of ESOL and social policy research.

This Knowledge Economy Skills Scholarship (KESS) project will be held in the Faculty Life Sciences and Education at the University of South Wales. KESS is a programme funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) awarded by the Welsh European Funding Office (WEFO) in the Welsh Government. The project will focus on researching existing structures to support the linguistic, economic, and social integration of migrants, as well as identifying obstacles which hinder successful integration. The project is backed by the Welsh Refugee Council, who are uniquely placed to support the observation and documentation of research data gathered from this project. It should be noted that while research will focus primarily on those relocated under SVPRS, we anticipate that findings will both inform and be informed by the experiences of the wider migrant community. This may include the experience of: migrants who have settled in Wales following under the 1999 Immigration Act policy of asylum seekers dispersal; migrants from the European Economic Area; and victims of human trafficking.

Programme of research:

To view full details of this project please visit: http://kess2.ac.uk/20823-2/

Studentship:

The studentship will cover the fees for a 1 year full time MRes programme and pay a stipend of circa £11 k p.a. There is also around £3k project support costs available for consumables, travel/conference attendance, minor equipment, training (including the KESS Grad School) and conference attendance.

The position is available from 1st October 2017.

Eligibility of Student:

To be eligible to hold a KESS studentship, you must:

have a home address in the Convergence area (details below)* at the time of registration.
have the right to take up paid work in the Convergence area* on completion of the scholarship.
be classified by the University as ‘home’ or ‘EU’ for tuition fees purposes according to the University’s guidelines.
satisfy University of South Wales’s admissions criteria: see below, qualifications and experience and application process
*The Convergence area covers West Wales and the Valleys, and is made up of the following 15 local authorities: Isle of Anglesey, Gwynedd, Conwy, Denbighshire, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Swansea, Neath Port Talbot, Bridgend, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Merthyr Tydfil, Caerphilly, Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen.

Qualifications and experience:

Eligible applicants will:

Have a degree (2i or higher) in an appropriate applied linguistics or social sciences discipline
Possess a reasonable understanding of issues surrounding refugees and asylum seekers/ ESOL/ social policy in Wales
Be highly self-motivated, with capacity to learn and develop data analysis techniques
Have well-developed and positively collaborative interpersonal skills
Have an ability to deliver technical reports and communicate findings
Be willing to travel and work across Wales
Application Process:

To download an application package, please visit: http://gro.southwales.ac.uk/studentships/KESSII/participant/

For any queries on eligibility, please contact: KESS Team at Research and Innovation Services, University of South Wales: [Email Address Removed] Tel: 01443 482578

For informal enquiries or further programme information, please contact: Dr. Mike Chick ([Email Address Removed]).

Further information at:

Closing date for applications: midnight on Sunday 16th July 2017

(Interviews will be held w/c 17th July 2017)