Dr Ramzi Merabet

Profile

My academic background is in intercultural studies, English language teaching, and higher education studies. I joined University of Leeds as a PGR in 2018 and started teaching in the School of Languages, Cultures, and Societies (LCS) the same year. After graduating I joined The Language Centre as a lecturer in EAP and intercultural studies. Over the years, I served in different academic and professional positions, including work experiences and projects with the university’s Educational Engagement team, the Quality Assurance Team, in addition to several internships within the School of Languages, Cultures, and Societies. 

Beside my current academic position in the University of Leeds, I also serve as the Research Officer of the International Association for Languages and Intercultural Communication (IALIC). I take part in the organisation of IALIC’s annual conference (e.g., 2022 in Lisbon, 2023 in Nicosia, and 2024 in Bordeaux) and lead the conference’s Research Forum. I also closely work with the association’s journal: Language and Intercultural Communication (LAIC) as a peer reviewer.

Responsibilities

• Module Leader: ELU2001 English and Intercultural Communication
• Co-leading: LAW5222M Intercultural Business and Organisational Communication
• Co-leading: MODL1161 An Introduction to Thinking Interculturally

Research interests

My research interests fall broadly within the areas of intercultural studies, internationalisation of higher education, and language teaching. I am currently interested in exploring the position of culture and interculturality within UK higher education, the experiences of students labelled international, and issues pertaining to the (un)sustainability of internationalisation in UK higher education. 

Interculturality:

I research interculturality from a stance that attempts to reveal preconceptions about self/other relationships, and how it manifests in different spaces within and beyond the campus. My research generally focuses on space and mobility, and how perceptions about oneself and others are constructed and reproduced in different settings. Some key research areas include: 

• How culture/interculturality are mobilised at institutional and personal levels. 
• The ideological underpinnings of EDI discourses. 
• Mobility and its impact on presumed ‘intercultural communication’ 

Internationsalisation of Higher Education:

I research internationalisation of higher education through problematising the ‘international’ label and assumption about students’ experiences. I am interested in exploring how deficit narratives about students labelled international are constructed and dessiminated institutionally, how they relate to the wider socio-cultural setting, and how narratives of presumed difference are mobilised to other students and staff. Some key research areas include: 

• The realities and experiences of students labelled international. 
• Neoliberalism in higher education. 
• Sustainable internationalisation. 

Qualifications

• PhD Languages, Cultures, and Societies
• MA English
• BA English

Professional memberships

• International Association for Languages and Intercultural Communication (IALIC)

Student education

I lead ELU2001: English and Intercultural Communication, co-lead LAW5222M: Intercultural Business and Organisational Communication, and co-lead MODL1162: Introduction to Thinking Interculturally. Starting from 2024-25 academic year I will be co-leading a new module in Intercultural Communication as part of MA TEAP: Teaching English for Academic Purposes.

Research groups and institutes

• Language Centre
• Intercultural Studies