Romana Careja

Romana Careja is an Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science and Public Management, University of Southern Denmark (SDU), affiliated with the Danish Center for Welfare Studies. Her research focuses on comparative politics, immigration policies, welfare state analysis, and East-West migration dynamics. She coordinates the Master in Social Sciences in Comparative Public Policy and Welfare Studies, supervising over 30 MSc theses and currently mentoring 2 PhD students.

Her expertise includes designing and managing international research projects, such as the INTAS-NIS project involving 8 teams. She has collaborated on projects analyzing immigrant integration, welfare chauvinism, and social policy in Europe. Key research areas include the interplay between migration policies and welfare systems, with a focus on Denmark, Germany, and Eastern European countries.

Careja’s work bridges theory and practice through empirical studies on neighborhood boundaries, diaspora policies, and the European social model’s pressures. She has published widely in journals like Journal of European Social Policy and contributed to encyclopedic volumes such as the Elgar Encyclopedia of Political Sociology.

• Teaching & Leadership: Academic coordinator for the SOCLIFE PhD School (University of Cologne), managing teaching plans for the Master’s program at SDU, and reviewer for academic journals (e.g., UEFISCDI Romania, FWO Belgium).
• Awards: 2002 Research Fellowship and 2000 Civic Education Project Award.
• Grants: Led 3 research projects, including international collaborations.
• Media Engagement: Commented on Danish immigration policies in media and authored blogs on asylum policies.

Her research team explores topics such as welfare chauvinism trends, immigrant labor market outcomes, and the socio-political dimensions of migration in comparative contexts.