Between 08 and 12 of March 2024, one of our PhD Students, Catharina Lopes Scodro, attended the Oxford Spring School in Advanced Research Methods 2024, in the course Qualitative Methods 1 – Interviews & Fieldwork. Organised by the Department of Politics and International Relations of the University of Oxford, the Spring School was an excellent opportunity to be trained in social sciences research methods and to be involved in an interdisciplinary environment, following the E-BoP goal of fostering interdisciplinary approaches to research on the legal aspects of labour migration.
The course covered issues of Qualitative Research, like research design, puzzles and research questions; collection and analysis of qualitative data; Ethics, reflexivity, and writing. The program presented theoretical and practical questions of data collection, on how (to) and why do interviews, focus groups, ethnography, and participant observation.
Additionally, Catharina participated of the sessions of discussion of qualitative research design. She presented the research design of her thesis, in order to discuss the methodology she developed for her research as well the obstacles she is facing. Her presentation titled “Labour Migration Through The Borders: experiencing regulatory paths for au pairs in France and Ireland” was a great opportunity to receive questions and feedback from researchers with different backgrounds in the social sciences.