Fiona joined the Department of Social Policy as an LSE Fellow after completing her PhD in the same department. Her research focuses on how educational inequalities are perpetuated, legitimised, and accepted by different social groups.  

Her doctoral thesis employed mixed methods to explore the relationship between processes of educational stratification and understandings of meritocracy in Germany and Romania.  Her research contributes to the existing literature on education regimes by including to the analysis the post-socialist countries from Central and Eastern Europe. Also, her work explores the way in which elite students from different countries conceptualise educational privilege and educational success.

Prior to embarking on her PhD journey, Fiona worked as a Researcher in the Policy Research Centre at NatCen Social Research. By working on policy evaluations involving a diverse range of research methods, she gained experience in qualitative and mixed- methods work. Fiona is also the co-founder of the Doctoral Research Group on Inequality and Social Mobility, an international forum of early stage researchers.

Publications

Gogescu, F. (2024). Mapping the distinct patterns of educational and social stratification in European countries. Journal of European Social Policy, 34(3), 271-288. https://doi.org/10.1177/09589287241240966