"Being a Refugee" offers a picture of the lives of refugees before and after they arrive in the UK. The people featured are all highly qualified professionals and, like all refugees, their personal stories are shaped by their unique biographical, cultural and social backgrounds. Yet each narrative is lived within the broad social template of what it means to be a refugee in contemporary Britain. And their experiences as refugees have significant implications for policy and practice. Through life history and longitudinal study, "Being a Refugee" powerfully challenges the stereotyped images of refugees. It shows how and what the refugees learn, and the strategies they adopt as they build viable and respected identities for themselves in a new social and cultural space. The book provides an overview of policy in relation to asylum and immigration issues and reveals the often unintended and contradictory impact of policy on refugees' lives. Essential reading for policy makers, professionals and everyone concerned with refugee welfare, it is also invaluable for academic researchers with an interest in lifelong learning, higher education, life history, identity and migration studies.