𝐃𝐫. 𝐀𝐛𝐢𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐧 𝐄𝐠𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐨𝐤𝐮𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐝 £𝟏𝟎𝟎,𝟎𝟎𝟎 𝐄𝐒𝐑𝐂 : 𝐄𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐜 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐥)-𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐧 𝐀𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐈𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐄𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐮𝐫𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐊

A new ESRC PhD Studentship, valued at approximately £100,000 over four years, has been launched under the title:
“Venture To Be Resilient? The Interplay of Entrepreneurship, Migration Stress and Mental Health Among African Immigrant Entrepreneurs in the UK.”

This interdisciplinary project explores how African migrants who have started businesses in the UK feel about the process of entrepreneurship and how this informs their experience of migration stress, resilience, and wellbeing. It addresses a significant research gap by focusing on the contributions and experiences of African heritage entrepreneurs—particularly from Nigeria, Zimbabwe, and Ghana—who are often underrepresented in existing research and policy discussions.

The project will be led by Dr. Abiodun Egbetokun, an evolutionary economist and Senior Lecturer in Business Management at De Montfort University (DMU). Before joining DMU, he was Deputy Director of Research at Nigeria’s National Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM), where he worked on innovation, entrepreneurship, and development policy.

Dr. Egbetokun also holds editorial roles with:

Innovation and Development (Taylor & Francis)

IEEE Engineering Management Review (IEEE)

International Journal of Innovation and Technology Management

This studentship presents a valuable opportunity for PhD candidates interested in the intersections of entrepreneurship, migration, and mental health.