ERIC Number: EJ1240575
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 14
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1363-9080
EISSN: N/A
'We Are Not Free Here…' -- Palestinian IT Students' (Im)Mobile Transition from University to Employment or Further Education
Karpefors, Max; van Riemsdijk, Micheline
Journal of Education and Work, v33 n1 p19-32 2020
The Palestinian information technology (IT) sector is growing. Meanwhile, an ongoing out-migration of IT professionals and graduates is taking place. Drawing on group, pair and individual interviews, as well as fieldwork observations, this paper investigates highly skilled IT students' intentions to stay in or to leave the West Bank. In particular, it examines their transition from university to employment or further education, including professional opportunities and factors affecting migratory and stay decisions. This paper shows how physical, legal, bureaucratic, professional, educational, cultural and personal factors shape professional plans and career trajectories. Particular attention is paid to the Israeli occupation and gender expectations. The students' mobility is facilitated by completed degrees and diplomas, acquired skills and scholarships, all of which are potential tools to overcome restrictions. However, this study reveals a clash between aspirations and reality, which often results in limited freedoms. We argue that a student's relative (un)freedom contributes to (im)mobile transitions from university to employment or further education, where migration could be a way to obtain freedoms or to escape the lack thereof.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, College Students, Information Technology, Student Mobility, Migration, Student Motivation, Study Abroad, Occupational Aspiration, Employment Opportunities, Student Attitudes, Gender Differences, Gender Bias, Freedom
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Palestine; West Bank
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A