School of Social Sciences and Professions staff profiles content store_hidden Louise Ryan Our staff

Originally from Cork, and a graduate of University College Cork, Louise joined London Metropolitan University in June 2020 as Senior Professor. She previously was Professor of Sociology at the University of Sheffield, and before that was a professor and co-director of the Social Policy Research Centre at Middlesex University.

Louise has over 20 years of experience in higher education and has taught on a wide range of modules including Sociology of Gender, Ethnicity and Migration. She has a particular interest in research methods and has taught as programme leader of an MSc in research methods.

Louise currently teaches on the Researching Diversities and Inequalities course.

Louise is a leading expert in the field of migration and is regularly named amongst the most highly cited scholars globally.

She has received many prestigious research grants to develop her work on migration including several ESRC awards. She is currently Co-I on a £10 million, research centre grant, funded by the ESRC, ‘Connected Communities’ in partnership with colleagues at Sheffield Hallam, Queens Belfast and Stirling Universities, as well as local London-based NGO – the Brixton Project.

Louise is currently working on three other externally funded research projects:

1. Irish Nurses in the NHS: an Oral History Project.
2. Afghan Resettlement in England: Experiences and Opportunities (funded by the Nuffield Foundation).
3. An evaluation of the Afghan and Syrian Resettlement Schemes in the London Borough of Islington.

She recently completed a large Horizon 2020 project MIMY focusing on migrant youth across 9 European countries.

Louise has previously been awarded the following large grants:

1. EMpowerment through liquid Integration of Migrant Youth in vulnerable conditions (MIMY); Horizon2020, 2020-23; co-I and WP co-leader; €2.9 million (overall).
2. Sustainable Care: connecting people and systems; ESRC 2017-21; co-I and WP co-leader; £2.4 million (overall).
3. Researching Early School Leaving in the EU; FP7 Lead UK partner and leader on largest work package; 2013-18; €6 million (£800,000 to UK team).

Louise has been granted multiple professional appointments:

1. Chair of the British Sociological Association (2021-23).
2. Vice-chair of the BSA (2019-21).
3. Member of the ESRC Grant Assessment Panel (2016-18).
4. Chair of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Sociology (2015-18).

Louise was awarded a Fellowship of the Academy of Social Sciences in 2015 for her contribution to migration research. She is regularly interviewed in the press, on TV and radio as an expert on migration.

Journal articles (since 2010):

1. Ryan, L., & Doshi, N. (2025). ‘You would never pick up the thread from where you left off’: Older Irish women migrants' narratives of non‐return, post‐retirement. International Migration, 63(2), e13321.
2. D'Angelo, A., & Ryan, L. (2025). Qualitative analysis of migrants' network data: Using conceptual reflexivity to reveal the ‘magic trick’. International Migration, 63(2), e13257.
3. Kloc‐Nowak, W., & Ryan, L. (2025). ‘I Kiss the Screen, But It Is Not the Same’—Grandparenting in Geographically Dispersed Families. Global Networks, 25(2), e12523.
4. Gilodi, A., Ryan, L., & Aydar, Z. (2025). Peer Research in a Multi-National Project With Migrant Youth: Re-Thinking Vulnerability and Participatory Approaches. In Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung/Forum: Qualitative Social Research (Vol. 26, No. 2). DEU.
5. Ryan, L., López, M., & Dalceggio, A. (2024). Encountering the hostile environment: Recently arrived Afghan migrants in London. Critical Social Policy, 44(2), 242-262.
6. Kloc-Nowak, W., & Ryan, L. (2024). ‘I am afraid to fly there’: informal care in Polish migrants’ families immobilised by COVID-19. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 47(14), 3021-3040.
7. Grabowska, I., & Ryan, L. (2024). Return migration and embedding: through the lens of Brexit as an unsettling event. Comparative Migration Studies, 12(1), 6.
8. López, M., & Ryan, L. (2023). “What are you doing here?”: Narratives of border crossings among diverse Afghans going to the UK at different times. Frontiers in Sociology, 8, 1087030.
9. Mulholland, J., & Ryan, L. (2023). Advancing the embedding framework: Using longitudinal methods to revisit French highly skilled migrants in the context of Brexit. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 49(3), 601-617.
10. Grzymala-Kazlowska, A., & Ryan, L. (2022). Bringing anchoring and embedding together: theorising migrants’ lives over-time. Comparative Migration Studies, 10(1), 1-19.
11. Mulhollland, J and L. Ryan (2022) Advancing the embedding framework: using longitudinal methods to revisit French highly skilled migrants in the context of Brexit. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies (open access).
12. Lőrinc, M., Kilkey, M., Ryan, L., & Tawodzera, O. (2021). “You still want to go lots of places”: Exploring walking interviews in research with older migrants. The Gerontologist.
13. Ryan, L., Kilkey, M., Lőrinc, M., & Tawodzera, O. (2021). Analysing migrants' ageing in place as embodied practices of embedding through time: ‘Kilburn is not Kilburn any more’. Population, Space and Place, 27(3), e2420.Ryan, L., & Dahinden, J. (2021). Qualitative network analysis for migration studies: Beyond metaphors and epistemological pitfalls. Global Networks.
14. Tubaro, P., Ryan, L., Casilli, A. A., & D’angelo, A. (2021). Social network analysis: New ethical approaches through collective reflexivity. Social Networks, 67, 1-8.
15. Ryan, L. (2020). Telling network stories: researching migrants' changing social relations in places over time. Global Networks.
16. Kilkey, M., & Ryan, L. (2020). Unsettling Events: Understanding Migrants’ Responses to Geopolitical Transformative Episodes through a Life-Course Lens. International Migration Review.
17. Hickman and Ryan (2020), The “Irish question”: marginalizations at the nexus of sociology of migration and ethnic and racial studies in Britain, published in Ethnic and Racial Studies, Volume 43 Issue 16 (open access).
18. D’Angelo, A., & Ryan, L. (2019). The presentation of the networked self: Ethics and epistemology in social network analysis. Social Networks (online).
19. Erel, U and L. Ryan. (2019) ‘Migrant Capitals: proposing a multi-level spatio-temporal analytical framework’, Sociology 53(2): 246-263
20. Ryan, L., D’Angelo, A., Kaye, N., & Lorinc, M. (2019). Young people, school engagement and perceptions of support: a mixed methods analysis. Journal of Youth Studies, 22(9), 1272-1288.
21. Magdolna Lőrinc, Louise Ryan, Alessio D’Angelo & Neil Kaye (2019) De-individualising the ‘NEET problem’: An ecological systems analysis, European Educational Research Journal.
22. Ryan, Louise, and Magdolna Lőrinc. (2018) "Perceptions, prejudices and possibilities: young people narrating apprenticeship experiences." British Journal of Sociology of Education: 1-16.
23. Ryan, L. (2018). Narratives of Settling in Contexts of Mobility: A Comparative Analysis of Irish and Polish Highly Qualified Women Migrants in London. International Migration.
24. Ryan, L. (2018). Differentiated embedding: Polish migrants in London negotiating belonging over time. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 44(2), 233-251.
25. Ryan, L., & D’Angelo, A. (2018). Changing times: Migrants’ social network analysis and the challenges of longitudinal research. Social Networks, 53, 148-158.
26. Ryan, L. (2016). Looking for weak ties: using a mixed methods approach to capture elusive connections. The Sociological Review.
27. Ryan, L., & Maxwell, C. (2016). Social Class and Sociology: The State of the Debate Between 1967 and 1979. Sociology, 0038038515617696.
28. Ryan, L., Rodriguez, M. L., & Trevena, P. (2016, May). Opportunities and Challenges of Unplanned Follow-up Interviews: Experiences with Polish Migrants in London. In Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung/Forum: Qualitative Social Research (Vol. 17, No. 2).
29. Koppenfels, A. K., Mulholland, J., & Ryan, L. (2015). ‘Gotta Go Visit Family’: Reconsidering the Relationship Between Tourism and Transnationalism. Population, Space and Place, 21(7), 612-624.
30. Ryan, L. (2015). ‘It's Different Now’: A Narrative Analysis of Recent Irish Migrants Making Sense of Migration and Comparing Themselves with Previous Waves of Migrants. Irish Journal of Sociology, 23(2), 114-132.
31. Ryan, L. and E. Kurdi (2015) "‘Always up for the craic’: young Irish professional migrants narrating ambiguous positioning in contemporary Britain’ Social Identities, 21(3)
32. Ryan, L. (2015). ‘"Inside" and "Outside" of What or Where? Researching Migration Through Multi-Positionalities’, Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 16 (2)
33. Ryan, L. (2015) ‘Friendship-making: Exploring Network Formations through the Narratives of Irish Highly Qualified Migrants in Britain’, Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies
34. Ryan, L., Von Koppenfels, A. K. and Mulholland, J. (2015), ‘The distance between us’: a comparative examination of the technical, spatial and temporal dimensions of the transnational social relationships of highly skilled migrants, Global Networks, 15(2).
35. Ryan and Mulholland (2014) ‘French Connections: The networking strategies of French highly skilled migrants in London’, Global Networks, 14 (2): 148-166.
36. Ryan, L. Mulholland, J and A Agoston (2014) Talking Ties: Reflecting on Network Visualisation and Qualitative Interviewing, Sociological Research online, Sociological Research Online, 19 (2) 16.
37. Ryan, L. (2014) ‘Islam does not change’: young people narrating negotiations of religion and identity', Journal of Youth Studies, 17 (4): 446-460.
38. Ryan and Mulholland (2014) ‘Wives Are the Route to Social Life’: An Analysis of Family Life and Networking amongst Highly Skilled Migrants in London’ Sociology 48 (2) 251-267.
39. Lucine Endelstein, Louise Ryan (2013) Dressing religious bodies in public spaces: gender, clothing and negotiations of stigma among Jews in Paris and Muslims in London. Integr Psychol Behav Sci 47(2):249-64.
40. Ryan, L. 2013. ‘Compare and contrast: understanding Irish migration to Britain in a wider context’. Irish Studies Review, 21(1): 6-19.
41. Ryan and Vacchelli (2013) "Mothering through Islam": Narratives of Religious Identity in London, Religion and Gender, vol, 3 no 1.
42. Ryan, L., & Sales, R. (2013). Family Migration: The Role of Children and Education in Family Decision‐Making Strategies of Polish Migrants in London. International Migration, 51(2), 90-103.
43. Ryan, L. and J. Mulholland (2013) 'Trading Places: French Highly Skilled Migrants Negotiating Mobility and Emplacement In London', Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies.
44. McKie L. and Ryan, L. (2012) Exploring trends and challenges in sociological research. Sociology 40(5).
45. Ryan, L. (2011) ‘Muslim women negotiating collective stigmatisation: ‘We’re just normal people’, Sociology 45(6): 1045-1060.
46. Ryan, L. (2011) ‘Migrants’ social networks and weak ties: accessing resources and constructing relationships post-migration’, Sociological Review 59 (4): 707-724.
47. Ryan, Kofman and Aaron (2011) ‘Insiders and Outsiders: working with peer researchers in researching Muslim communities’, International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 14 (1): 49-60.
48. D’Angelo and Ryan (2011) ‘Sites of Socialisation – Polish Parents and children in London Schools’ in „Studia Migracyjne – Przegląd Polonijny” 2011, nr 1 (special issue on Polish Migration to UK).
49. Ryan, (2011) ‘Transnational Relations: Family Migration among Recent Polish Migrants in London’, International Migration, 49 (2) (Special issue on Eastern European Migrants).
50. Ryan (2010) ‘Becoming Polish in London: negotiating ethnicity through migration’ in Social Identities, 13 (3): 359-376, (special issue on Polish migration)

Books:

1. Irish Nurses in the NHS: an oral history with Grainne McPolin and Neha Doshi (2025)
2. Social Networks and Migration: relocations, relationships and resources by Louise Ryan (2023). To watch a 3 mins video about the new book visit here.
3. Revisiting migrant networks: migrants and their descendants in labour markets; Keskiner, E., Eve, M., & Ryan, L. (2022); Springer Nature. Open access book - to download all or part of the book visit here.
4. Ryan, L. Winning the Vote for Women: the Irish Citizen Newspaper and the Suffrage Movement in Ireland (Four Courts Press), 2018 McKie and Ryan (2016) An end to the crisis in empirical sociology? Routledge.
5. Ryan, L. U. Erel and A. D’Angelo (2015) Migrant Capital: Networks, Identities, Strategies, Palgrave Publishers.
6. Ryan, L. and W. Webster (eds) Gendering Migration: Masculinity, Femininity and Ethnicity in Post-War Migration to Britain (Ashgate Publishers 2008).

Louise is a leading expert on the topic of migration. Her research on migration was awarded with a Fellowship of the Academy of Social Sciences in 2015. She is available for media appearances or expert commentary.

Louise has written many journalistic pieces of migration including:

• Ryan and Kilkey on MAC report 
• This article was picked up and reprinted in The International Business Times 
• Kilkey and Ryan on ‘Brexodus'
• This article was picked up and cited in the Financial Times (Sept 12th 2018)
• Blog Post – Lessons for Brexit Britain: A Short History of Irish Migration Controversies (1st Feb 2019) 
• Invited Opinion Piece for RTE (Irish national broadcaster): ‘Why do British people know so little about Ireland?'
• Like the End of a Love Affair: Brexit and highly skilled migrants in London'