Cultural capital and professional development experiences of migrant health and social care professionals

This seminar will present the main findings of a study which explored the employment-related experiences of three groups of migrant health and social care professionals (doctors, social workers and nurses) before and after migrating to the UK. The emphasis will be on the findings emerging from the narrative interviews conducted with migrant doctors and migrant social workers. Most studies on the experiences of migrant health and social care professionals examine the challenges these groups face as they try to join the British workforce and their adverse workplace experiences. However, it is also important to explore the resources these professionals activate for coping with these challenges and difficulties and in particular, exploring how they utilise their cultural capital both in its formal form (for example, educational credentials and professional qualifications) and in its informal form (such as their work ethics). Our analysis will highlight not only employment-related problems but also how individuals effectively deal with professional challenges. The presentation will conclude with a discussion of the theoretical and practical implications of the study‘s findings.