Gaële Goastellec

Sociologist, my main research interests lie in the relationship between education systems and their societies through a comparative, historical, and multi-level approach. My first stream of research deals with access to Higher Education through a longue durée perspective with a special concern for social belongings’ categorisation (gender, ethnicity, class, etc.) and its translation into admission policies. I analyse jointly individual experiences, university policies and societal contexts including welfare state policies and national histories. A second line of research analyzes academic careers and HE organisations. My research articulates a sociology of inequalities with a sociology of public policy and organisations. My work especially explores intersections – between policy domains, research domains – so as to offer a comprehensive understanding of social phenomena.

Professor (MER – tenured) at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, I am the head of the Laboratory Capitalism, Culture and Society (LACCUS) as well as of the Politics and Organizations of Higher Education research unit at the Observatory Science, Policy and Society (OSPS). Current CHER (Consortium of Higher Education Researchers) president, and vice-President of the AISLF research committee on International Comparisons, I have been a Lavoisier Fellow (2004-2005) and a Fulbright New Century Scholar fellow (2005-2006).