Reconfigurations of class and migration: between mobility and emerging hierarchies (RECLASS)

The RECLASS project is situated at the intersection of migration studies, education research, and class analysis. It addresses questions concerning how migrants in Poland perceive and understand their place in society, how migration affects their sense of class belonging, and how symbolic boundaries emerge within peer networks and institutional environments, giving rise to new social hierarchies understood as rankings of individuals and groups based on their perceived social value.

The study employs a Qualitative Longitudinal Research design, involving the observation of the same individuals over a specified period in order to understand how their perspectives and experiences develop, as well as focus group interviews. The research will include pupils and students attending two types of educational institutions (university-track and vocational) in two selected locations. Participants will be recruited not only by the type of institution they attend but also by their field of study, reflecting diverse class trajectories, aspirations, and gendered educational and occupational patterns. This methodological approach, together with the analysis of the trajectories of young migrants, primarily international students from Ukraine, Belarus, and Asian countries, during their studies and transition into the labour market in Poland, allows for an in-depth understanding of their experiences, goals, and ways of perceiving reality.

The project will shed light on how migration is reshaping social structure in Poland. Furthermore, the findings will help explain how individuals build their lives across national borders and how class differences are expressed or challenged in daily life. More broadly, the results of the project will offer important insights into the social transformations taking place across Central and Eastern Europe as these societies become increasingly diverse.

Duration

2026 - 2030

Source of funding

National Science Centre Poland OPUS 29