Abstract
Since 2011, the Ivorian government has invested heavily in higher education to meet its labour market’s growing demand. In this article, we analyse the drivers of Ivorian student mobility from Côte d’Ivoire to France and Switzerland, highlighting the central role of migrant networks. We focus on the decision-making process and find that migration networks play an important role at every step: from initial aspirations to concrete plans and efforts to study abroad. Using 38 in depth interviews and two focus groups with Ivorian students who aspire to study in France and Switzerland, members of the education board, migration officers, and members of the Ivorian diaspora, we reveal that the functioning of the Ivorian higher education system is a factor of uncertainty for many students who consider that salvation can only come from migration. In addition, social representations linked to foreign diplomas inspire Ivorian students to choose international mobility. Migrant networks further encourage Ivorian students to move abroad because stories from successful migrants sharing their mobility experience are coupled with the provision of key resources to support mobility projects.
Highlights
For a long time, student migration has been considered, to some extent, as an understudied phenomenon, new studies have been conducted in the last few years (Bereni & Rubi, 2015; Dia, 2014; King & Raghuram, 2012)
We attended an informational session at the French Cultural Institute and a meet-up organized by private agencies that promote student migration, where we interviewed some Ivorian students who wanted to study in French universities
The interest of this study is especially emphasized by the scarcity of research on student mobility in Africa and on the influence of migration networks on the realization of such mobility
Summary
Student migration has been considered, to some extent, as an understudied phenomenon, new studies have been conducted in the last few years (Bereni & Rubi, 2015; Dia, 2014; King & Raghuram, 2012). We perceive a significant concentration of student mobility flows to Western Europe and Northern America (Campus France, 2018) even if south-south international student migrations are increasing (Razafimahefa & Raynal, 2014). A major and growing part of this student inflow comes from developing countries, with sub-Saharan countries having the highest international student mobility rates (Campus France, 2019). This rise in student mobility (especially towards Western Europe) seems to be a consequence of the implementation of educational policies and the development of the knowledge economy, which aims to attract highly qualified students from around the world
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