Mohamed Abbe

Please tell us about your research project...
My project consists in ethnographic fieldwork focusing on Syrians living and hosted in France and England. My thesis in political science started at the end of 2019 and I hope to defend it by the end of 2023 at the University of Lille (CERAPS/CNRS). This work mobilises several approaches related to Social Sciences.

Could you please tell us a bit more about your scholarship/exchange programme?
My stay at MFO comes after brief fieldwork carried out in 2020.
I am here in England for a second time to meet again with my respondents based in Oxford, London and some rural areas. Thanks to the support of La MFO, I have the opportunity to enlarge my sample and to enrich my first sociological observations. This second stay should last between 2 to 3 months (August-October 2022).

First impressions of Oxford/the University?
The City of Dreaming Spires is une ville de paradoxes. What makes its charm and specific identity. All social classes live here with an international and scholarly dimension that continues to grow with the tourist business. Its universities (Colleges) and libraries (Réseau de la Bodléienne) offer an ideal place for documentation, carrying out in-depth research or building scientific collaborations. Two weeks after my arrival, I received an invitation to present my primary results at the School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography (Laboratory COMPAS, Oxford University). This doctoral seminar will be held in early October.