Professor George Kolankiewicz

Chair of Sociology of Central Europe

Professor George Kolankiewicz Email
g.kolankiewicz@ssees.ucl.ac.uk

Phone Number
020 7679 8822

Fax
020 7679 8777

After graduating in Sociology from the University of Leeds in the tumultuous year of 1968 I started my PhD research on social inequality in Polish society. This was interrupted by a stint as a Research Officer in 1969-1971 with David Lane at the University of Essex as part of a major SSRC project on Political and Social Processes in Eastern Europe. After a fondly remembered introductory experience to lecturing at the University of Swansea I returned to Essex in 1972 where I stayed until 1999 as a lecturer in sociology, working on communist societies whilst lecturing on sociological theory and modern industrial societies.In 1999 I took the Chair in Sociology at UCL SSEES which allowed me to concentrate on country and area to which after a five year term as Director of SSEES I have now returned.

Research Interests
Against the background of evolving east European societies, my major intellectual interests have always focused around the dynamics of social inequality. My monograph on Towards a Sociology of Transition published in 2000 is probably the most useful short hand account of my research agenda in this area. The theme of social citizenship which runs through this book connects to the other strand of my current research - namely understanding the impact of the mass migration of Poles to the UK after 2004, especially the theoretical tools which are being developed to capture the significance of this migration.

Teaching and supervision
I am currently completing the supervision of my remaining postgraduate students most of whom are working on different aspects of Polish migration. I have returned to lecturing on sociology in the first year and apart from CEELBAS related teaching on the MRes I have developed an MA course with assistance from postdoctoral fellows and postgraduate students on Class, Citizenship and Migration in the Wider Europe.

Current Research
A comprehensive analysis of how Polish sociology since 1989 has faced the challenge of understanding and explaining the advent of a market based, class society.

Recent Publications

Links

http://www.ceelbas.ac.uk/

http://www.integrationindex.eu/

http://www.britishcouncil.org/poland-europe-2021-seminars.htm

This page last modified Wednesday 26 May 2010.