Educational stakeholders’ perspectives on educational transitions and future careers for young refugees in rural areas undergoing depopulation

There are high hopes that young refugees will help to counter population decline in Sweden’s rural areas. However, there is a need to better understand the factors and processes that facilitate or hinder their persistent integration and continued presence (including further education and work preparation). This article therefore explores the prevailing refugee reception practices and their consequences during and after the major refugee wave in Sweden that started in 2015. This wave, caused by wars in Syria and Afghanistan, had a huge impact in Sweden’s rural areas. The analysis is based on interviews with local officials, school heads, teachers, and career guidance counsellors in various municipalities. The findings illuminate these groups’ understandings of requirements for effective, fruitful reception of young refugees, and how their reception can be organised to improve their preparation for further education and work. The results also reveal notable differences between rural areas (e.g. between smaller and larger rural municipalities), and suggest that young refugees’ prospects and likelihood of remaining in such areas can be enhanced by measures including incorporating multicultural and intercultural perspectives in staff training, and organisational adjustments to enhance local career learning and interculturalism.