Abstract (Re)integrating refugeeswith higher education and professional expertise—referred to as refugee professionals (RPs)—remains a persistent challenge across host countries, including Norway, which is often described as having relatively comprehensive credential recognition schemes and incentivized integration training programs. Using institutional ethnography (IE), this study examines the disjunctures and tensions between Norway’s integration policies and RPs’ everyday experiences with professional (re)integration. Drawing on standpoint data from 18 informants—based on semi-structured interviews with 18 RPs and anonymized supplementary field notes—as well as an examination of key policy and regulatory texts, the study shows that RPs often face restrictive and bureaucratic recognition procedures, inadequate and generic integration training, and systemic devaluation of their prior professional qualifications and expertise. The findings further reveal a mismatch between RPs’ professional aspirations, which are encouraged at the national policy level, and the ruling relations that organize and coordinate local institutional priorities, emphasizing preparation for rapid entry into any available employment. Concepts such as internal bordering and deservingness help illuminate how such exclusionary outcomes are justified within frameworks designed to promote integration and inclusion.
Sanjar Botoon (Thu,) studied this question.