Politicised Nationality for Transnational Life: Simultaneous Incorporation of Mainland Chinese settled student migrants in Singapore

Abstract

Built on the existing literature on transnationalism and my own empirical research, this thesis suggests that Mainland Chinese student migrants in Singapore follow a pattern of ?simultaneous incorporation? in the sense that they are incorporated, but not completely assimilated, into the local Singaporean society, while at the same time maintain transnational ties to China. More importantly, however, this thesis argues that in transnational simultaneous incorporation, ethnicity does not play as big a role as it is normally assumed. Instead the nation-state remains a predominant framework under which the students form their identity and interact with Singaporean society. As such this thesis will not only provide new information about student migration, but will also contribute to general theoretical discussion in migration studies, particularly by highlighting the complex intersections between the national and the transnational.