Bettina (Chioma) Teegen, PhD, FHEA, PGCE (secondary)
Pronouns: she/her
About
I am a postdoctoral researcher with a PhD in Sociology.
My work brings together social science research, inclusive pedagogy, intercultural learning, and advanced online and distance-learning delivery.
My research interests centre on race and ethnicity, racialisation, identity formation, migration, acculturation, international student and African diasporaric experiences. Drawing on interdisciplinary perspectives from sociology, criminology, mental health and education, I am particularly interested in exploring how racism, institutional practices and structural inequalities influence educational experiences, social integration, belonging, identity and psychological wellbeing. My research interests also extend to intercultural competence, culturally responsive approaches to education and mental-health services, and the role of institutional and community support in addressing inequalities and fostering social inclusion.
My doctoral thesis at the University of Surrey examined the acculturation experiences of 39 Black African international doctoral students in the United Kingdom and United States.
Affiliations and memberships
News
In the media
BERA Annual Conference SIG presentation award winners
"Sub-Saharan faces in Caucasian spaces: Black African international PhD students’ experiences in the UK"
ResearchResearch interests
Research interests include: International students in higher education; Educational inequalities; Social justice; Race, gender, crime and the criminal justice system; Race and Ethnicity in higher education; Black Feminism, Race and the Mental Health system, Cultural Identity
PEER-REVIEWED CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
2023 African International Doctoral Students in the UK: A Study of Acculturation. British Educational Research Association (BERA), Birmingham, England.
2022 Black African Transnational Doctoral Students in the US. American Educational Research Association (AERA), San Diego, USA.
2019 The need for mentoring programs for Black African graduate students at PWIs. Association of Black Sociologists, New York, USA.
2019 Counselling services for graduate students on campus: Do they even exist? Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), San Francisco, USA.
2018 International graduate students at American universities: Acculturation in African and Afro-Caribbean Doctoral Students: A Mixed Methods Study. Association of Blacks in Higher Education (AABHE), New Orleans, USA.
INVITED PRESENTATIONS AND SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS
Online Panellist | Vitae Conference
2023
- Discussed challenges, difficulties and opportunities for postgraduate researchers and early-career researchers within the wider research culture.
Invited Presentation | University of Cincinnati
2021
Presented to the course Comparative Black Feminism on social constructions of race in England, the United States and Germany, and on cultural identity.
EDITORIAL AND PEER-REVIEW SERVICE
Editorial Reviewer | Journal of Underrepresented & Minority (JUMP)
2023-present
Editorial Reviewer | Journal of International Students (JIS)
2020-present
Abstract Reviewer | American Educational Research Association (AERA)
2019
Abstract Reviewer | Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), San Francisco
2019
Session Chair / Moderator | Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), San Francisco
2019
AWARDS AND FUNDING
BERA Best Special Interest Group Presentation Award | 2023
Generation Delta Travel Grant (£100) | 2023
Journal of International Students Editors’ Choice Award | 2022
University of Surrey SHINE Scholars Studentship Award (approximately £18,000 per year for 3.5 years) | 2022
Journal of International Students Editors’ Choice Award | 2021
Indicators of esteem
Peer-reviewed presentations:
Teegen, B. C. (September 2023). African International Doctoral Students in the UK: A Study of Acculturation. At British Educational Research Association (BERA) in Birmingham, England
Teegen, B. C. (March 2023). The Importance of Mental Health services on UK Campuses: Directions for University Staff. At international Conference of Advanced Research for Education, Teaching and Learning (ARETL) in Berlin, Germany.
Teegen, B. C. (April 2022). Black African Transnational Doctoral Students in the US. At American Educational Research Association (AERA) in San Diego, USA.
Teegen, B. C. (August 2019). The need for mentoring programs for Black African graduate students at PWIs. At Association of Black Sociologists in New York, USA.
Teegen, B. C. (April 2019). Counselling services for graduate students on campus: Do they even exist? At Comparative and International Education Society in San Francisco, USA.
Teegen, B. C. (April 2019). International students at American universities: Acculturatin in African and Afro- Caribbean Doctoral Students: A Mixed Methods Study. At Association of Blacks in Higher Education (AABHE) in New Orleans, USA.
Research interests
Research interests include: International students in higher education; Educational inequalities; Social justice; Race, gender, crime and the criminal justice system; Race and Ethnicity in higher education; Black Feminism, Race and the Mental Health system, Cultural Identity
PEER-REVIEWED CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS
2023 African International Doctoral Students in the UK: A Study of Acculturation. British Educational Research Association (BERA), Birmingham, England.
2022 Black African Transnational Doctoral Students in the US. American Educational Research Association (AERA), San Diego, USA.
2019 The need for mentoring programs for Black African graduate students at PWIs. Association of Black Sociologists, New York, USA.
2019 Counselling services for graduate students on campus: Do they even exist? Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), San Francisco, USA.
2018 International graduate students at American universities: Acculturation in African and Afro-Caribbean Doctoral Students: A Mixed Methods Study. Association of Blacks in Higher Education (AABHE), New Orleans, USA.
INVITED PRESENTATIONS AND SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS
Online Panellist | Vitae Conference
2023
- Discussed challenges, difficulties and opportunities for postgraduate researchers and early-career researchers within the wider research culture.
Invited Presentation | University of Cincinnati
2021
Presented to the course Comparative Black Feminism on social constructions of race in England, the United States and Germany, and on cultural identity.
EDITORIAL AND PEER-REVIEW SERVICE
Editorial Reviewer | Journal of Underrepresented & Minority (JUMP)
2023-present
Editorial Reviewer | Journal of International Students (JIS)
2020-present
Abstract Reviewer | American Educational Research Association (AERA)
2019
Abstract Reviewer | Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), San Francisco
2019
Session Chair / Moderator | Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), San Francisco
2019
AWARDS AND FUNDING
BERA Best Special Interest Group Presentation Award | 2023
Generation Delta Travel Grant (£100) | 2023
Journal of International Students Editors’ Choice Award | 2022
University of Surrey SHINE Scholars Studentship Award (approximately £18,000 per year for 3.5 years) | 2022
Journal of International Students Editors’ Choice Award | 2021
Indicators of esteem
Peer-reviewed presentations:
Teegen, B. C. (September 2023). African International Doctoral Students in the UK: A Study of Acculturation. At British Educational Research Association (BERA) in Birmingham, England
Teegen, B. C. (March 2023). The Importance of Mental Health services on UK Campuses: Directions for University Staff. At international Conference of Advanced Research for Education, Teaching and Learning (ARETL) in Berlin, Germany.
Teegen, B. C. (April 2022). Black African Transnational Doctoral Students in the US. At American Educational Research Association (AERA) in San Diego, USA.
Teegen, B. C. (August 2019). The need for mentoring programs for Black African graduate students at PWIs. At Association of Black Sociologists in New York, USA.
Teegen, B. C. (April 2019). Counselling services for graduate students on campus: Do they even exist? At Comparative and International Education Society in San Francisco, USA.
Teegen, B. C. (April 2019). International students at American universities: Acculturatin in African and Afro- Caribbean Doctoral Students: A Mixed Methods Study. At Association of Blacks in Higher Education (AABHE) in New Orleans, USA.
Teaching
As of 2023 and 2024, I have been appointed as a permanent Associate Lecturer in pre-sessional English for Academic Purposes (EAP) at Lancaster University and the University of Nottingham. In this role, I am dedicated to teaching undergraduate students academic literacy skills, which are essential for their preparation for higher education studies in the UK.
Currently, I also mentor a variety of international students to support them with successfully navigating diferent realms of academia.
Publications
In the context of an enhanced focus on racial inequalities in higher education, growing attention has been paid to the role of race and ethnicity as a specific theme in the university curriculum. However, few existing studies have engaged with a broad sample of views from educators about their experiences of teaching in this area. This article aims to address the gap by investigating UK university educators’ perspectives on teaching race and ethnicity and exploring this contested aspect of the curriculum with their students. It reports findings from a nationwide survey based on a quota sample drawn from 30 UK universities, including 224 educators teaching in the social sciences. The article presents descriptive statistics from the fixed-response survey items, alongside qualitative analysis of educators' open-ended survey responses, regarding curriculum approaches, classroom dynamics, confidence, training and support, with bivariate analyses examining variation by subject discipline and ethnic background. The findings underline the continued sensitive and contested nature of race and ethnicity in the university curriculum, and the need for more individualised training, subject-specific guidance, and institutional support, to ensure educators are adequately prepared for teaching these issues.
Additional publications
Heron, M., Donaghue, H., McGrath, L., Gill, A. & Teegen, B. C. (2026). Channelling altruism and disrupting expertise: Supervisor and doctoral students experiences of a co-design project. International Journal for Students as Partners, Accepted for publication.
Kyere, E., Awine, E. J. A., Osei-Owusu, S. E., Teegen, B. C., Etienne, L.K., & Lipsey A. D. (2026). Mass incarceration in the service of racial project: uncovering historical premise through critical exploration of slave dungeons in Ghana. Families in Society, 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1177/10443894261439197
Hemming, P. J., Bundock, L., Moore, R., Teegen, B. C., Zinane, N. C., Harrison, S., Nair, A., Satyavaram, V., Wiliamson, S. (2026). Navigating the contested curriculum: UK university educators’ perspectives on teaching race and ethnicity. Cogent Education, 13(1), 2709744
Teegen, B.C. (2024). Sub-Saharan faces in Caucasian spaces: Black African international PhD students’ experiences in the UK. Bera Blog. Available at: https://www.bera.ac.uk/blog/sub-saharan-faces-in-caucasian-spaces-black-african-international-phd-students-experiences-in-the-uk
Teegen, B. C. (2022). Where do I belong? In L.A. Arasaratnam- Smith, D. K.Deardorff (Eds.), Developing Intercultural Competence in Higher Education (pp.28-30). Routledge. Available at:here
Teegen, B. C. & Popova, D. (August 2021). International graduate students and cultural competency in counselling services: directions for health practitioners. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling. doi.org/10.1080/03069885.2021.1961211
Kyere, E., Karikari, I., & Teegen, B. C. (2020). The Associations among Teacher discrimination, Parent’ and Peer Emotional Supports, and African American Youth’s School Bonding. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 101(4), 469-483. https://journals-sagepub-com.surrey.idm.oclc.org/doi/full/10.1177/1044389419892277
Wilks, S., Spurlock, W., Brown, S., Teegen, B.C., &Geiger, J. (2018). Examining spiritual support among African American and Caucasian alzheimer’s caregivers: A risk and resilience study. Geriatric Nursing, 39(6), 663-668. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29807671/