Staff profile

I am a sociologist and a geographer of education with a strong commitment to the politics of education and envisaging alternative futures for education and society more broadly. My interests lie at the intersection of sociology, geography and history and the central theme running through my work is how structures and experiences of power and inequality in education are reproduced over time and through different local and regional geographies.

Before joining Durham sociology in January 2019, I was a postdoc at the University of Bath on the ESRC-funded project, the Geographies of Higher Education: spatial and social mobilities. With Mike Donnelly (PI), we developed an exciting programme of research on spatial inequalities of race and class in the transition to higher education and on inequalities in graduate recruitment. I was awarded my PhD in Geography from King’s College London in April 2017. It focussed on the geography of elite and middle-class schooling in England. Both my masters and undergraduate degrees were interdisciplinary, drawing on sociology, history, geography and languages (French and German) and this background plays out in my work which continues to span different disciplines.

I am keen to supervise PhD students with an interest in any aspect of educational inequality sociological, spatial or historical. I have particular expertise in secondary schooling, post-16 and higher education but I am also interested in lifelong learning and working-class education. I know the British systems of education best, though I have some more limited knowledge of education in France, the US and Chile and am keen to work with students and colleagues internationally. Theoretically my background is Bourdieusian with a good dose of Doreen Massey, Antonio Gramsci and Stuart Hall but I try to be theoretically open and heterodox.

I am also keen for my work to be politically engaged and engaging and to make my work publicly accessible. I regularly blog, tweet and write policy briefs around educational inequality. I have also been actively involved in education policy, notably around private schools as one of the co-founders of the Abolish Eton campaign group and in my capacity as an active member of the University and Colleges Union.

If I'm not doing that, then in normal times you might find me walking in the hills (preferably the Pennines), reading sci fi (preferably utopian) or travelling somewhere to keep up with my own diaspora of friends and family. These days I'm probably on zoom though.

• Access to higher education
• Education Policy
• Elite education
• GIS and social network analysis, PCA, LCA and other interesting statistical methods (especially in R)
• History of education
• Mixed methods research
• Politics of higher education
• Regional and local geographies of education and how these combine with race, class and gender
• Secondary schooling, post-16 education and lifelong learning

• 2021: Editorial Board - British Journal of Sociology of Education :
• 2020: SAGE Prize Winner Sociological Research Online Article of the year: Awarded for paper co-authored with Michael Donnelly and Alex Barratta.
  
  https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1360780418816335
• 2020: British Journal of Sociology of Education Best ECR Paper 2020: Each year, the Executive Editors of British Journal of Sociology of Education pick a winning article from a shortlist of articles by early career researchers. View shortlisted papers and previous winners here.
• 2017: Editorial Board Sociological Review:
• 2000: Invited speaker: Invitations to speak at various conferences, research seminars and public events. An indicative recent list:
  
  June 2021. Why are some children worth more? Economic inequality between state and private schools. Hosted by The World Transformed. Presentation of Common-Wealth research report and panel discussion with Prof. Rebecca Boden and councillor and teacher Stephen Longden.
  
  June 2021. Great mistakes in education policy: And how to avoid them. British Educational Research Association event and book launch. Discussant.
  
  April 2021. The material basis for elite education: capital, charity and the state. Special Session at the British Sociological Association Annual Conference.
  
  December 2020. Balloon Debate on ‘What is the right age to begin academic selection?’. Debate hosted by the Higher Education Policy Institute with politicians, key education stakeholders. I argued the case for no selection at any age which was the most popular position.
  
  July 2020. The sociology and history of Sheffield's schools. A presentation and discussion hosted by local campaign group, Sheffield Transformed.
  
  March 2020. Why we do not need elitism in education. TedX Newcastle College event.
  
  February 2020. Place, inequality and undergraduate mobilities in college-based and university-based higher education. Seminar organised by Holly Henderson, Society for Research and Higher Education, London.
  
  September 2019. Various speaking engagements at Labour Party Conference with the Centre for Labour and Social Studies and Comprehensive Future.
  
  September 2019. Widening Participation Research Seminar, UCL, London.
  
  May 2019. Research seminar at Uppsala University, Sociology of Education Research Group.

Book review

• The Crisis of the Meritocracy: Britain’s transition to mass education since the Second World War
  
  Liu, Y., Gamsu, S., & Allouch, A. (2022). The Crisis of the Meritocracy: Britain’s transition to mass education since the Second World War. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 43(6), 970-978. https://doi.org/10.1080/01425692.2022.2105476
• Fragile elite: the dilemmas of China’s top university students
  
  Gamsu, S. (2019). Fragile elite: the dilemmas of China’s top university students. Children’s Geographies, 17(2), 247-249. https://doi.org/10.1080/14733285.2018.1446240
• Miseducation: inequality, education and the working classes
  
  Gamsu, S. (2018). Miseducation: inequality, education and the working classes. International Studies in Sociology of Education, 27(4), 448-450. https://doi.org/10.1080/09620214.2018.1531047
• Schools and Urban Revitalization: Rethinking Institutions and Community Development
  
  Gamsu, S. (2015). Schools and Urban Revitalization: Rethinking Institutions and Community Development. Environment and Planning B: Urban Analytics and City Science, 42(2), 379-380. https://doi.org/10.1068/b4202rev

Chapter in book

• Meritocracy and the politics of inequality in higher education
  
  Gamsu, S. (in press). Meritocracy and the politics of inequality in higher education. In R. Sidhu, J. Waters, & Y. Cheng (Eds.), The Elgar International Encyclopedia of Sociology of Education. Edward Elgar.
• Aspirations and the Histories of Elite State Schools in London: Field Theory, Circuits of Education and the Embodiment of Symbolic Capital
  
  Gamsu, S. (2018). Aspirations and the Histories of Elite State Schools in London: Field Theory, Circuits of Education and the Embodiment of Symbolic Capital. In G. Stahl, D. Wallace, C. Burke, & S. Threadgold (Eds.), International perspectives on theorizing aspirations.. Bloomsbury Academic.

Journal Article

• Critical comparative geographies of elite schooling: comparing the UK, Canada, and Sweden
  
  Yoon, E.-S., Gamsu, S., Larsson, E., & Waters, J. (2025). Critical comparative geographies of elite schooling: comparing the UK, Canada, and Sweden. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057925.2025.2483660
• If You Want the University to Change, Don't Theorise—Organise!
  
  Gamsu, S. (2025). If You Want the University to Change, Don’t Theorise—Organise!. The British Journal of Sociology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-4446.13200
• ‘Levelling up’ social mobility? Comparing the social and spatial mobility for university graduates across districts of Britain
  
  Yu, Y., Gamsu, S., & Forsberg, H. (2024). ‘Levelling up’ social mobility? Comparing the social and spatial mobility for university graduates across districts of Britain. The British Journal of Sociology, 75(4), 379-399. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-4446.13089
• The material basis of elite schooling: capital and the state
  
  Gamsu, S., Courtois, A., & Boden, R. (2024). The material basis of elite schooling: capital and the state. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 45(3), 305-324. https://doi.org/10.1080/01596306.2024.2335001
• Elite schools and slavery in the UK – capital, violence and extractivism
  
  Gamsu, S., Ashe, S., & Arday, J. (2024). Elite schools and slavery in the UK – capital, violence and extractivism. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 45(3), 325-345. https://doi.org/10.1080/01596306.2024.2335002
• Spatial Imaginaries and Geographic Division within the UK: Uneven Economic Development, Ethnicity and National Identity
  
  Donnelly, M., & Gamsu, S. (2022). Spatial Imaginaries and Geographic Division within the UK: Uneven Economic Development, Ethnicity and National Identity. Sociology, 56(6), 1217-1235. https://doi.org/10.1177/00380385221090828
• Accent and the manifestation of spatialised class structure
  
  Donnelly, M., Gamsu, S., & Barratta, A. (2022). Accent and the manifestation of spatialised class structure. The Sociological Review, 70(6), 1100-1118. https://doi.org/10.1177/00380261221076188
• Financing elite education: economic capital and the maintenance of class power in English private schools
  
  Gamsu, S. (2022). Financing elite education: economic capital and the maintenance of class power in English private schools. The Sociological Review, 70(6), 1240-1266. https://doi.org/10.1177/00380261221076202
• ‘Whiteness is an immoral choice’: the idea of the University at the intersection of crises
  
  Hall, R., Gill, R., & Gamsu, S. (2022). ‘Whiteness is an immoral choice’: the idea of the University at the intersection of crises. Higher Education. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-022-00855-3
• Talking the Talk of Social Mobility: the political performance of a misguided agenda
  
  Ingram, N., & Gamsu, S. (2022). Talking the Talk of Social Mobility: the political performance of a misguided agenda. Sociological Research Online, 27(1), 189-206. https://doi.org/10.1177/13607804211055493
• Social network analysis methods and the geography of education: regional divides and elite circuits in the school to university transition in the UK
  
  Gamsu, S., & Donnelly, M. (2021). Social network analysis methods and the geography of education: regional divides and elite circuits in the school to university transition in the UK. Tijdschrift Voor Economische En Sociale Geografie, 112(4), 370-386. https://doi.org/10.1111/tesg.12413
• From assisted places to free schools: subsidizing private schools for the northern English middle classes
  
  Gamsu, S. (2020). From assisted places to free schools: subsidizing private schools for the northern English middle classes. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 41(8), 1093-1114. https://doi.org/10.1080/01425692.2020.1833180
• Spatial structures of student mobility: Social, economic and ethnic ‘geometries of power’
  
  Donnelly, M., & Gamsu, S. (2020). Spatial structures of student mobility: Social, economic and ethnic ‘geometries of power’. Population, Space and Place, 26(3), Article e2293. https://doi.org/10.1002/psp.2293
• S’engager contre les réformes néolibérales de l’Université
  
  Gamsu, S., Allouch, A., & Nous, C. (2020). S’engager contre les réformes néolibérales de l’Université. Savoir Agir, 53(3), 56-65. https://doi.org/10.3917/sava.053.0056
• Mapping the relational construction of people and places
  
  Donnelly, M., Gamsu, S., & Whewall, S. (2020). Mapping the relational construction of people and places. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 23(1), 91-108. https://doi.org/10.1080/13645579.2019.1672284
• A Sociolinguistic Perspective on Accent and Social Mobility in the UK Teaching Profession
  
  Donnelly, M., Barratta, A., & Gamsu, S. (2019). A Sociolinguistic Perspective on Accent and Social Mobility in the UK Teaching Profession. Sociological Research Online, 24(4), 496-513. https://doi.org/10.1177/1360780418816335
• The field of graduate recruitment: leading financial and consultancy firms and elite class formation
  
  Donnelly, M., & Gamsu, S. (2019). The field of graduate recruitment: leading financial and consultancy firms and elite class formation. British Journal of Sociology, 70(4), 1374-1401. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-4446.12659
• The spatial dynamics of race in the transition to university: Diverse cities and White campuses in U.K. higher education
  
  Gamsu, S., Donnelly, M., & Harris, R. (2019). The spatial dynamics of race in the transition to university: Diverse cities and White campuses in U.K. higher education. Population, Space and Place, 25(5), Article e2222. https://doi.org/10.1002/psp.2222
• The ‘other’ London effect: the diversification of London's suburban grammar schools and the rise of hyper‐selective elite state schools
  
  Gamsu, S. (2018). The ‘other’ London effect: the diversification of London’s suburban grammar schools and the rise of hyper‐selective elite state schools. British Journal of Sociology, 69(4), 1155-1174. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-4446.12364
• Regional structures of feeling? A spatially and socially differentiated analysis of UK student im/mobility
  
  Donnelly, M., & Gamsu, S. (2018). Regional structures of feeling? A spatially and socially differentiated analysis of UK student im/mobility. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 39(7), 961-981. https://doi.org/10.1080/01425692.2018.1426442
• Moving up and moving out: The re-location of elite and middle-class schools from central London to the suburbs
  
  Gamsu, S. (2016). Moving up and moving out: The re-location of elite and middle-class schools from central London to the suburbs. Urban Studies, 53(14), 2921-2938. https://doi.org/10.1177/0042098015601593

Newspaper/Magazine Article

• Educating education workers
  
  Gamsu, S. (in press). Educating education workers.
• There should be hope for a fairer sector beyond what the UUK blueprint offers
  
  Gamsu, S. (2024, October 10). There should be hope for a fairer sector beyond what the UUK blueprint offers. WonkHE.
• Hope and strategy after the MAB
  
  Gamsu, S. (2023, September 15). Hope and strategy after the MAB. Notes from Below.
• Taking back the university from marketisation, exploitation and hardship
  
  Gamsu, S., & Morrin, K. (2023, January 27). Taking back the university from marketisation, exploitation and hardship. Red Pepper.
• Time to shut down the education factory
  
  Gamsu, S. (2022, October 27). Time to shut down the education factory. Red Pepper.
• Obsessing over Oxbridge is not the way to beat inequality
  
  Gamsu, S. (2019). Obsessing over Oxbridge is not the way to beat inequality. The Guardian.

Other (Print)

• Educational elitism isn’t going away without a fight – so Labour must step up
  
  Gamsu, S. (in press). Educational elitism isn’t going away without a fight – so Labour must step up. Open Democracy.
• Universities in Crisis
  
  Gamsu, S. (in press). Universities in Crisis. Centre for Labour and Social Studies.
• Elite educators have milked the system for long enough
  
  Gamsu, S. (2021). Elite educators have milked the system for long enough. Open Democracy.
• A focus on access to elite institutions distracts from more fundamental inequities in HE
  
  Gamsu, S. (2020). A focus on access to elite institutions distracts from more fundamental inequities in HE (pp. 16-17). Research intelligence.
• Private school integration must mean more than the state subsidising middle-class schools
  
  Gamsu, S. (2020). Private school integration must mean more than the state subsidising middle-class schools. Private Schools Policy Reform.
• Better policymaking needs democracy: Who is education policy for?
  
  Gamsu, S., & Hall, R. (2019). Better policymaking needs democracy: Who is education policy for?. WonkHE.
• Eton or Charterhouse? On the Labour Campaign Against Private Schools
  
  Gamsu, S. (2019). Eton or Charterhouse? On the Labour Campaign Against Private Schools. Verso Books Blog.
• Oxbridge Diversity is Important, But Inequality in Higher Education Runs Much Deeper
  
  Gamsu, S., & Donnelly, M. (2017). Oxbridge Diversity is Important, But Inequality in Higher Education Runs Much Deeper. Centre for Labour and Social Studies.
• Diversity troubles – comprehensive solutions to HE’s racial segregation
  
  Gamsu, S., & Donnelly, M. (2017). Diversity troubles – comprehensive solutions to HE’s racial segregation. WonkHE.
• How Rising London Rents are Funding Elite Private Schools
  
  Gamsu, S. (2016). How Rising London Rents are Funding Elite Private Schools. Novara Media.
• Education Not Segregation: A Serious Strategy for Educational Reform for the Labour Party
  
  Gamsu, S. (2016). Education Not Segregation: A Serious Strategy for Educational Reform for the Labour Party. Novara Media.
• Why the 11+ isn’t the form of selection we should be worrying about
  
  Gamsu, S. (2015). Why the 11+ isn’t the form of selection we should be worrying about. Open Democracy.

Report

• Why are some children worth more than others? The private-state school funding gap in England
  
  Gamsu, S. (2021). Why are some children worth more than others? The private-state school funding gap in England.
• A New Vision for Further and Higher Education
  
  Gamsu, S., & Hall, R. (2019). A New Vision for Further and Higher Education.
• HOME AND AWAY: Social, ethnic and spatial inequalities in student mobility
  
  Donnelly, M., & Gamsu, S. (2018). HOME AND AWAY: Social, ethnic and spatial inequalities in student mobility.
• Diverse Places of Learning? Home neighbourhood ethnic diversity and the ethnic composition of universities
  
  Gamsu, S., & Donnelly, M. (2017). Diverse Places of Learning? Home neighbourhood ethnic diversity and the ethnic composition of universities.