Dr. Jana Berg studied Sociology (M.A.) and Linguistics (B.A.) at the Johannes Gutenberg-University in Mainz and the University of Vienna. She holds a PhD in Sociology from the Leibniz University of Hanover. In May 2017 she joined the DZHW. Her main research is on higher education for refugees and science communication in post-colonial contexts.

Dr. Jana Berg
Research Area Governance in Higher Education and Science
Researcher
- +49 511 450670-104
- +49 511 450670-960
Academic research fields
Higher education for refugees, science communication in post-colonial contexts
List of projects
List of publications
Durable supports for refugees in higher education through resisting short-termism and organisational memory loss: illustrative cases from Australia and Germany.Berg, J., Grüttner, M., & Baker, S. (2022).Durable supports for refugees in higher education through resisting short-termism and organisational memory loss: illustrative cases from Australia and Germany. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management (online first). https://doi.org/10.1080/1360080X.2022.2129316 Abstract
Recently, an increasing number of students from refugee and asylum-seeking backgrounds (SRABs) entering universities in settlement countries such as Australia and Germany have necessitated the establishment of a variety of supports. However, to date, little attention has been paid to the organisational conditions surrounding such supports. This study thus examined these conditions through the conceptual lens of organisational memory loss. Based on the two illustrative cases of Australia and Germany, it was described how building durable and responsive supports for SRABs is undermined by structural, ideological, and temporal imperatives that erode the possibilities for a sharable organisational memory. |
Supporting prospective refugee students’ pathways to German higher education institutions – The perspectives of key actors in access, admission and study preparation.Schröder, S., Jana, B., & Carolin, O. (2022).Supporting prospective refugee students’ pathways to German higher education institutions – The perspectives of key actors in access, admission and study preparation. Beiträge zur Hochschulforschung - Themenheft zu internationalen Studierenden(2-3), 40-58. |
Organisational support for refugee students in German higher education.Berg, J. (2022).Organisational support for refugee students in German higher education. A systems theoretical analysis of the formalisation and development of support structures for refugee students and underlying discourses at German higher education organisations. Dissertationsschrift. Hannover: Leibniz Universität Hannover. https://doi.org/10.15488/11988 |
International or refugee students? Shifting organisational discourses on refugee students at German higher education organisations.Berg, J. (2022).International or refugee students? Shifting organisational discourses on refugee students at German higher education organisations. International Studies in Sociology of Education (online first). https://doi.org/10.1080/09620214.2022.2048264 Abstract
Following the refugee influx of 2015 and 2016, many German higher education organisations (HEOs) responded with support programmes for refugee students. In this context, refugees became formally and discursively differentiated from other international students. During later stages of the programmes, this differentiation became blurred, and discourse surrounding refugee students partly shifted back to framing them as international students, which is also represented in further support programme development. Based on a systems theoretical framework, this paper investigates the shifting organisational discourse on refugee students within the context of functional needs and structural changes at German HEOs. |
Wege von Geflüchteten an deutsche Hochschulen (WeGe).Berg, J., Grüttner, M., İkİz-Akıncı, D., Otto, C., Schröder, S., Schmidtchen, H., & Weber, A. (2021).Wege von Geflüchteten an deutsche Hochschulen (WeGe). Daten- und Methodenbericht zu den quantitativen und qualitativen Datenpaketen des DZHW-Projekts „WeGe“. Hannover: DZHW.
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Responsivität deutscher Hochschulen in der postmigrantischen Gesellschaft: Am Beispiel des Hochschulzugangs von Geflüchteten.Grüttner, M., Beigang, S., Schröder, S., Berg, J., & Kleimann, B. (2021).Responsivität deutscher Hochschulen in der postmigrantischen Gesellschaft: Am Beispiel des Hochschulzugangs von Geflüchteten. ZDfm – Zeitschrift für Diversitätsforschung und -management, 6(2), 191-196. https://doi.org/10.3224/zdfm.v6i2.07 |
Erfolgreiche Studienvorbereitung? – Ergebnisse einer Mixed-Methods-Studie zum Erfolg von Geflüchteten in der Studienvorbereitung.Grüttner, M., Schröder, S., Berg, J., & Otto, C. (2021).Erfolgreiche Studienvorbereitung? – Ergebnisse einer Mixed-Methods-Studie zum Erfolg von Geflüchteten in der Studienvorbereitung. In M. Neugebauer, H.-D. Daniel, & A. Wolter (Hrsg.), Studienerfolg und Studienabbruch (S. 235-258). Wiesbaden: Springer VS. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-32892-4_10 Abstract
Since more qualified refugees have been looking for protection and prospects in Germany, the demand for pre-study programs has remained high. The WeGe project (Refugees’ Pathways to German Higher Education Institutions) examines the conditions for successful study preparation of refugees and uses a mixed-methods research design. As a conceptual framework, the Capabilities Approach (CA) serves both as a basis for a definition of success and for the analysis of requirements for successful study preparation on an institutional, social and individual level. It turns out that the vast majority of refugees successfully complete their pre-study programs. However, transitions to higher education depend on institutional barriers, which manifest them |
Expectations, experiences and anticipated outcomes of supporting refugee students in Germany – a systems theoretical analysis of organizational semantics.Berg, J. (2021).Expectations, experiences and anticipated outcomes of supporting refugee students in Germany – a systems theoretical analysis of organizational semantics. In N. Harrison & G. Atherton (Hrsg.), Marginalised Communities in Higher Education - Disadvantage, Mobility and Indigeneity (S. 97-118). London: Routledge. |
Introduction: Refugees in Higher Education—Questioning the Notion of Integration.Berg, J., Grüttner, M., & Streitwieser, B. (2021).Introduction: Refugees in Higher Education—Questioning the Notion of Integration. In J. Berg, M. Grüttner, & B. Streitwieser (Hrsg.), Refugees in Higher Education—Questioning the Notion of Integration (S. 3-17). Wiesbaden: Springer VS. Abstract
This edited volume shares the proceedings of a symposium that was as held in the summer of 2019 in Hanover, Germany and dedicated to exploring the notion of integration as it relates to access to higher education for students of refugee background. The symposium included presentations and discussions of access to higher education in Germany, institutional contexts, and the challenges and benefits for students of refugee background compared with other groups. Throughout the symposium, we collaboratively questioned the notion of integration within higher education from different disciplinary, methodological and theoretical perspectives. One special panel also included a group of refugee students discussing their experiences and the main chall |
Refugees in Higher Education: Questioning the Notion of Integration.Berg, J., Grüttner, M., & Streitwieser, B. (Hrsg.) (2021).Refugees in Higher Education: Questioning the Notion of Integration.. Wiesbaden: Springer VS. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-33338-6 Abstract
This edited volume addresses critical issues surrounding higher education access for students of refugee backgrounds. It combines a variety of theoretical and methodological perspectives on the challenges, opportunities, experiences and expectations of refugee students, as well as some of the institutional frameworks that facilitate their access to higher education. Following a critical discussion of the notion of ‘integration’, the team of authors who are made up of academics and refugee students critically investigate higher education as an objective of as well as a means to greater inclusion and integration. |
University Applicants from Refugee Backgrounds and the Intention to Drop Out from Pre‐Study Programs: A Mixed‐Methods Study.Grüttner, M., Schröder, S., & Berg, J. (2021).University Applicants from Refugee Backgrounds and the Intention to Drop Out from Pre‐Study Programs: A Mixed‐Methods Study. Social Inclusion, 9(3), 130-141. https://doi.org/10.17645/si.v9i3.4126 Abstract
The mixed‐methods project WeGe investigates key factors for refugees’ integration into pre‐study programs and conditions for successful transitions to higher education institutions (HEIs). In this article, we first examine the dropout intentions of international students and refugee students participating in formal pre‐study programs at German HEIs to disclose both barriers and resources. We use insights from migration research to extend theoretical student dropout models and analyse novel data from a quantitative survey with international and refugee students in pre‐study programs. Our findings show that refugee students intend to drop out from pre‐study programs more often than other international students. This difference disappears when |
Support For Prospective Refugee Students in Germany: Quo Vadis?Berg, J. (2021).Support For Prospective Refugee Students in Germany: Quo Vadis? In B. Hall & R. Tandon (Hrsg.), Socially Responsible Higher Education - International Perspectives on Knowledge Democracy (S. 228-242). Leiden/Boston: Brill Sense. Abstract
Social engagement can be seen as a crucial part of the third mission of higher education organisations. One aspect of adopting social responsibility is supporting access to higher education for marginalised and underrepresented groups. This chapter describes the introduction and development of support structures for refugee students in Germany. It identifies the principal challenges for and influences on such structures and makes recommendations on how to support their continued existence. |
Bildungs- und Lebenswege von Geflüchteten nach der Studienvorbereitung.Berg, J., Grüttner, M., Otto, C., & Schröder, S. (2021).Bildungs- und Lebenswege von Geflüchteten nach der Studienvorbereitung. (DZHW Brief 03|2021). Hannover: DZHW. https://doi.org/10.34878/2021.03.dzhw_brief |
Formalising organisational responsibility for refugees in German higher education: the case of first contact positions.Berg, J., Gottburgsen, A., & Kleimann, B. (2021).Formalising organisational responsibility for refugees in German higher education: the case of first contact positions. Studies in Higher Education (online first). https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2021.1872524 |
Geflüchtete in der Studienvorbereitung - Individuelle, soziale und institutionelle Faktoren beeinflussen den Erfolg.Grüttner, M., Schröder, S., Berg, J., Otto, C., & Laska, O. (2020).Geflüchtete in der Studienvorbereitung - Individuelle, soziale und institutionelle Faktoren beeinflussen den Erfolg. (DZHW Brief 7|2020). Hannover: DZHW. https://doi.org/10.34878/2020.07.dzhw_brief |