Commonwealth Students, UK Higher Education and the Making of Global Knowledge Networks, 1950-2000

This project aims to generate historical perspectives on the experiences and careers of Commonwealth students who came to the UK to study science from the 1950s to the 1990s. While there is growing sociological literature on the experiences of current and recent international students, studies often have a narrow focus and little evidence on how decisions to study overseas affected careers or the implications for scientific knowledge construction and circulation in a global context. Historical accounts tend to focus on an unrepresentative group of mainly white men who rose to prominence in the British scientific establishment. Assessments of the economic impacts frequently concentrate on potential benefits for the UK by strengthening its research base or developing global connections in key export markets, failing to consider how nations of origin are affected or to recognise later moves to other countries.

The project is timely and relevant as it contributes to three broad areas of research and scholarship:

Firstly, the project sheds light on the experiences of Commonwealth (/international Student) mobility. It draws attention to the changes in policies and narratives on international students over time - from the narrative of pastoral care in the 1950s after the post-war period, the narratives of surveillance during the cold war and the narratives of being a 'customer' in the period of marketization of universities in the 1990s.

Secondly, the project focuses on the global history of science. It discusses the circulation and exchange of materials and individuals as key themes to the generation of global scientific knowledge. The project aims to focus on global micro-histories centred on individuals and families to shed light on big historical phenomena. It uses oral history methodology as an interpretive tool to understand the practices of science in the postcolonial context.
Thirdly, through 30 oral history interviews, the project aims to offer insight into how scientific consciousness was shaped and wider epistemic networks and scientific legacies were established. Oral history methodology offers new interpretive perspectives that are not always attainable through the readings of colonial and Commonwealth histories or historiographies of global science.
Methodological framework:

The primary methodology of the project is life story interviews which will capture the subjective experiences largely missing from written sources. These interviews will be supplemented with archived interviews, archival research and collation and analysis of existing quantitative data. This allows triangulation between sources and contextualisation of the case study. The project commenced with an interdisciplinary literature review encompassing oral history methodology, global histories of science, scientific careers, and recent sociological literature on student mobility. This review enabled identifying the key gaps in the literature, selecting potential case studies and establishing historical perspectives that might contribute to contemporary debates. It has also generated the methodological underpinning for the ethics application. This phase also includes practical training in oral history interviewing.

The identification, collation and analysis of historical statistical data and survey of existing oral history material, memoirs and biographical accounts have enabled to establish the parameters for the selection of interviewees. The sample of interviewees is structured to capture a range and diversity of experience which is identified using online searchers. Statistical data reveals that Indian students constituted one of the largest groups of Commonwealth students that came to study science in the UK. Therefore, India is selected as an overseas case study site. Further, as an Indian National, my local, cultural knowledge and linguistic skills will allow navigating cultural norms and conduct in-person interviews.