From the Camps to the Campus: Refugees’ Experiences in Higher Education through Their Narratives

This study explores eight refugee students’ experiences in higher education, more specifically, in a private American College in Greece. The qualitative methodology was followed by using narratives based on the students’ personal stories and in-depth semi-structured interviews. Using a thematic analysis, main themes are identified and discussed in the findings, such as stability and citizenship, financial and language barriers, racism, biases and discrimination, and sense of belonging or exclusion. Thus, this study focuses not only on the difficult route towards a better life and the struggles of their individual unique stories to give another perspective and challenge existing stereotypes that apply to refugees, focusing more on their remarkable resilience to learn and evolve and setting them as an example of strength.