Higher education as a pathway for female immigrants’ establishment and well-being in Sweden

Figures & data

Table 1 . Information about participants (with fictitious names).

Name	Age	Country of origin	Migrated to Sweden	Status of studies
Ana	33	Armenia	1995, aged six	Graduated
Paula	23	Iran	2011, aged 12	Ongoing higher education
Maria	28	Armenia	2007, aged 13	Graduated
Isabell	37	Iran	2007, aged 21	Ongoing higher education
Sofia	23	Syria	2016, aged 17	Ongoing higher education

Figure 1. Final thematic map.

Table 2. Themes.

Themes
1. Enabling factors for access to higher education
2. Path to empowerment
3. A sense of belonging in a new society

Table

Participant	Data extract	Code	Theme
Paula	“I think that one gains a lot more cohesion with the help of higher education, especially as an adult. […] You create opportunities for yourself in the future in Sweden, for example, through the jobs you can get. […] Also, student life contributes to making new friends and contacts. Despite everyone having different backgrounds, they are in the same place and share common interests through education”	Social contexts important for participation in a society	A sense of belonging in a new society
Isabell	“Higher education has been highly beneficial, both for my personal development and for my chance to establish myself in Sweden. My education has enabled learning and development, e.g., understanding how to collaborate with others and to explain complex things, which makes me more capable to engage in society, in a workplace for example. Thanks to my education, I feel that I can contribute to Swedish society […]. Because it’s important for well-being to feel accepted in a society and to feel engaged. I believe that as humans, we need to feel that we belong to a social group and that we are knowledgeable. Everything revolves around the social environment, as humans, we enjoy interacting with other people, we enjoy being part of society.”	Sense of community important for well-being New values and perspective	A sense of belonging in a new society
Maria	“I think that higher education has always been the plan, or how to say, my home country is a country where people are well educated. It is expected of you to get a higher education. Especially for women; a woman should have an education, it’s important. So, I have always known that I was going to study at the university.”	View of being a woman	Path to empowerment
Ana	“My education has been crucial. I don’t know what would have happened if I hadn’t been accepted to my education, I mean it has shaped my life here in Sweden. Higher education leads to a higher salary, it gives me a certain, how can I say, for me, it is a pride to have been able to complete a higher education. And all the knowledge the education has provided me with, by that, it has strengthened me as a person […]. It has strengthened the way I see myself, my independence and so on, sort of self-fulfilling, to feel that I have a higher education”	Higher education promotes self-fulfilment	Path to empowerment
Sofia	“In the beginning, I almost felt a bit embarrassed to talk about my higher education in Sweden […]. I felt like I was bragging because maybe I hung out with people whose mothers didn’t speak Swedish or have an education. But then after a while, I felt like it could be inspiring for other people who had migrated to Sweden. I wanted to demonstrate that higher education is possible and that it has a positive impact on life.”	View of life The experience of living conditions	Enabling factors for access to higher education
Ana	“My parents are my whole foundation, everything I am has been possible thanks to them. Partly because they are good parents but also because they left everything behind and fled to a new country. And fought their way up from living in a refugee camp to getting jobs and making sure we had everything we needed.”	The importance of family	Enabling factors for access to higher education