Dr Alina Rzepnikowska Phillips

Dr Alina Rzepnikowska Phillips is an experienced lecturer and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA), with a strong track record of teaching across undergraduate and postgraduate levels. She has previously taught at the University of Central Lancashire, University College London, and the University of Manchester, delivering a broad range of social science modules including: Racism and Ethnicity in the UK, Multicultural Britain, Migration and Health, Contemporary Social Thought, Sociology of Personal Life, Research Design, Creative Methods, and Sociology PhD Workshops.

Since joining the University of Suffolk in 2021, Alina has taken on the role of Sociology Course Leader, contributing actively to curriculum development. She currently teaches modules such as Sociological Imagination, Migration and Ethnicity, Racialisation, Racism & Resistance, Gender and Sexuality, Policy and Politics, and Understanding Research.

Alina is also an experienced supervisor of undergraduate and master’s dissertations and actively supports PhD students throughout their research journey. She is committed to providing effective, student-focused supervision that nurtures independent thinking and academic growth.

Alina’s teaching philosophy is rooted in inclusivity, participation, and research-led, student-centered learning.

Academic Journal Articles

Rzepnikowska, A. (2023) ‘Racialisation of Polish migrants in the UK and in Spain (Catalonia)’, Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 49(6), pp. 1517–1533.

Rzepnikowska, A. (2020) ‘Migrant experiences of conviviality in the context of Brexit’, Central and Eastern European Migration Review, 9(1), pp. 65–83.

Rzepnikowska, A. (2019) ‘Racism and xenophobia experienced by Polish migrants in the UK before and after Brexit vote’, Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 45(1), pp. 61–77.

Rzepnikowska, A. (2018) ‘Polish migrant women’s narratives about language, racialised and gendered difference in Barcelona’, Gender, Place & Culture, 25(6), pp. 850–865.

Rzepnikowska, A. (2017) ‘Conviviality in the workplace: The case of Polish migrant women in Manchester and Barcelona’, Central and Eastern European Migration Review, 6(2), pp. 51–68.

Rzepnikowska, A. (2016) ‘Convivial cultures in Manchester and Barcelona: Exploring the narratives of Polish migrant women’, Migration Studies – Polish Diaspora Review, 42(2), pp. 119–134.

Rzepnikowska, A. (2016) ‘Imagining and encountering the Other in Manchester and Barcelona: The narratives of Polish migrant women’, Journal of the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology (Special Issue: Postsocialist Mobilities), 15, pp. 55–108.

Book Chapters

Rzepnikowska, A. and Duda-Mikulin, E.A. (2025) ‘Poland’s right-wing constructions of the Others at the Polish-Belarussian border (2021–2023)’, in Novais, R.A. and Christofoletti, R. (eds.) The Palgrave Handbook on Right-Wing Populism and Otherness in Global Perspective. Global Political Sociology. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan.

Rzepnikowska, A. (2024) ‘Citizenship and belonging in the times of Brexit: the case of Polish migrants in Manchester’, in Sredanovic, D. and Byrne, B. (eds.) Brexit and Citizens’ Rights: History, Policy and Experience. Manchester: Manchester University Press.

Rzepnikowska, A. (2021) ‘Polish migrants in Britain and Spain: The media and political discourses’, in Fouskas, T. (ed.) Immigrants, Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Times of Crises: An International Handbook on Migration and Refugee Studies, Management Policies and Governance. Athens: European Public Law Organization (EPLO).

Rzepnikowska, A. (2019) ‘Shifting racialised positioning: Migrant women in Manchester and Barcelona’, in Essed, P., Farkuharson, K., Pillay, K. and White, E. (eds.) Relating Worlds of Racism: Dehumanisation, Belonging and the Normativity of European Whiteness. London: Palgrave, pp. 191–219.

Conference and Workshop Activities

‘Challenging State-Driven Racism at the Polish-Belarusian Border’, paper presented at SC RACED (IMISCOE) workshop ‘How to talk about racism and race? Debates in academia and civil society’, INED, Campus Condorcet, Aubervilliers, Paris, 2024

Migration Research Seminar, Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona, 2023

‘Racialisation of Polish migrants in Britain and Spain’, invited speaker (online), Adam Mickiewicz University, Poland, 2022

Dr Alina Rzepnikowska Phillips is actively engaged in international academic collaboration and dialogue. She regularly contributes to international workshops and conferences focused on migration, ethnicity and social justice. She is a member of RACED – the IMISCOE Standing Committee on Race, Racism and Discrimination – a key interdisciplinary forum for scholars researching racial inequalities and exclusions. Through her involvement in RACED, Alina contributes to advancing critical conversations around racial inequalities. Most recently, she participated in a RACED workshop in Paris, which offered valuable opportunities for collaboration and scholarly exchange across Europe.

Alina is also a co-organiser of the Racial Justice, Equity and Power conference at the University of Suffolk, an international event that brings together academics, activists and practitioners to explore and challenge structural inequalities and promote anti-racist practice.

Her international collaborations include a co-authored papers, reflecting her commitment to cross-border academic partnerships. In addition, Alina serves as a peer reviewer for the Revista de Estudios Sociales, an academic journal published by the Universidad de los Andes in Colombia, contributing to global research dissemination and scholarly dialogue.