Refugees may be highly qualified and experienced professionals, yet many remain unemployed or under employed, in a lower-grade occupation than their skills merit. This has consequences for these individuals, including loss of earnings and loss of identity and self-worth, but also for the UK economy where there are many areas of skills shortage. Mainstream employment and refugee support organisations lack the specialised knowledge to help these individuals, knowledge which is the basis of professional bodies and their members.

In the UK, many were “waiting many months or even years to understand realistic career options, including whether they can utilize their previous degrees, qualifications and experience. Few participants had received specialized in-person advice about whether or how they could use their previous degrees or qualifications. It was important to many participants to receive in person advice from someone they trusted especially when making fraught decisions about whether to try and regain their previous profession or change careers.” (UNHCR 2021, pp.28-29)

UNHCR (2021). Snapshot assessment on employment of resettled refugees in the UK. Retrieved from https://www.unhcr.org/uk/publications/legal/6112a6204/snapshot-assessment-on-employment-of-resettled-refugees-in-the-uk.html

This project sought to produce a research-informed review of the policies and activities of professional bodies to support refugees into employment in their disciplines, to understand current issues, barriers, and provision, and to provide recommendations to assist professional bodies in developing their practice. Three approaches were taken:

• A scoping review of global literature on highly skilled migrants, and professional bodies
• A review of websites and relevant activities of a sample of professional bodies in the UK to evaluate some of the support currently available
• Interviews and discussions with key informants, including professional body representatives and related organisations, refugee and employment support organisations, and refugees with a professional background themselves

With a few exceptions, the literature is largely blind to the potential role of professional bodies other than as institutions accrediting qualifications where they are a regulator. They are not represented as having the capacity through their operations and members to be agents for change.

There is a huge diversity of professional bodies in the UK, with, to an outsider, a confusing array of names, terminology, roles, powers, relationships, degrees of specialism, and geographical reach. While some may recognise refugees as potential client groups, few professional bodies acknowledge that there are those with the skills or capacity to work in their profession, and even fewer provide clear and accessible support for those wishing to do so. There are consistently recurring support needs identified, and much goodwill and willingness to help. There are some areas of good practice, innovation, and partnerships in the health, IT and engineering sectors which could be used as models and developed.

The full research report is available here and the findings have informed this guide to the issues faced by highly skilled refugees, and the practical ways in which professional bodies could further support them into work.

You can view the content of the guide below, or download a pdf version.