Derya Özkul

Dr Derya Ozkul is an Assistant Professor in Sociology at the University of Warwick. Her work examines the politics of migration and displacement. Her current work focuses on the use of new technologies for managing, controlling, and processing mobility and asylum in Europe. Previously, she conducted research on migration policies in the Middle East, specifically in Turkey and Lebanon, as well as in Europe, primarily Germany, and Australia. 

Before joining Warwick, Derya worked for over five years at the Refugee Studies Centre of the University of Oxford. Before that, she worked at the University of Sydney, where she completed her PhD in Sociology. Derya also holds an MSc degree in Comparative Politics from the London School of Economics and a BA degree in Political Science and International Relations from Bogazici University in Turkey.

She is the author of numerous journal articles and book chapters related to the politics of migration and displacement. Her work has appeared in journals including Third World Quarterly, Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, Turkish Studies and British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies. Currently, she serves as the Co-Investigator of the Algorithmic Fairness for Asylum Seekers and Refugees Project, funded by the Volkswagen Foundation. Previously, she was the Principal Investigator of the Governance of AI-based Technologies in the Management of Migration Project, funded by the John Fell Fund at the University of Oxford.

Beyond her academic research, Derya actively contributes to #ProtectNotSurveil, a coalition of civil society organisations that developed amendment recommendations to the EU AI Act to enhance protection against potential harms arising from the use of artificial intelligence in the migration context. Additionally, she acts as a key advisor to the Forced Migration Review for their forthcoming issue on ‘Digital Disruption’. She occasionally provides expert opinions on asylum adjudication, particularly related to conditions for Alevis in Turkey.

She shares insights on her work through tweets at @DeryaOzkul. You can find a full list of her publications on Google Scholar.