Social integration to fight the "brain drain", case Kokkola
Eijsberg, Helena (2022)
Eijsberg, Helena
2022
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2022060113933
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2022060113933
Tiivistelmä
Education-based migration flows are shifting students from their home countries to host countries. Considering the increasing labour shortage, many countries are turning to these skilled immigrants to help counter their decreasing population by remaining in their host countries for an extended period to help boost the economy and gain an innovative advantage.
In the case of Finland, where immigration is still a recent phenomenon, the government has been developing its legislation to attract and better retain these international talents. However, studies show that when deciding to remain in a country, international graduates consider a wide range of factors: practical, financial, and personal matters.
This study is focusing on the city of Kokkola, home to over half a thousand international students. Whilst the city welcomes hundreds of students each year, not many remain in the area after graduation. Various projects are currently focusing on supporting students to get into contact with working life and find work easier.
This research focuses on social integration, as many activities are being led concerning more practical matters and connections to working life. It has an inductive approach; rather than directly focusing on solutions, this research aims at asking how the international students are experiencing any feeling of belonging to the area, to understand how they value social integration overall. How do they experience their place in Kokkola, and what elements influence their feeling integrated – or not? What elements and stakeholders could help?
The respondents provided three key elements to enhance integration: mindset, people, and language. By focusing on and supporting these elements, social integration could be smoother and support further connections with working life, among others, and thus, help retain these talents in Kokkola or Finland. As integration is a two-way street, local stakeholders, such as the municipality, and private and public organizations, could coordinate their actions to support the process of social integration and help international students take a step from going global to local.
In the case of Finland, where immigration is still a recent phenomenon, the government has been developing its legislation to attract and better retain these international talents. However, studies show that when deciding to remain in a country, international graduates consider a wide range of factors: practical, financial, and personal matters.
This study is focusing on the city of Kokkola, home to over half a thousand international students. Whilst the city welcomes hundreds of students each year, not many remain in the area after graduation. Various projects are currently focusing on supporting students to get into contact with working life and find work easier.
This research focuses on social integration, as many activities are being led concerning more practical matters and connections to working life. It has an inductive approach; rather than directly focusing on solutions, this research aims at asking how the international students are experiencing any feeling of belonging to the area, to understand how they value social integration overall. How do they experience their place in Kokkola, and what elements influence their feeling integrated – or not? What elements and stakeholders could help?
The respondents provided three key elements to enhance integration: mindset, people, and language. By focusing on and supporting these elements, social integration could be smoother and support further connections with working life, among others, and thus, help retain these talents in Kokkola or Finland. As integration is a two-way street, local stakeholders, such as the municipality, and private and public organizations, could coordinate their actions to support the process of social integration and help international students take a step from going global to local.