Choosing without choice: On compulsion, education and the future in the narratives of newly arrived men

This article explores how newly arrived men with migrant backgrounds narrate their vocational education and career choices in relation to societal demands and expectations in Sweden, and how the expression must (Swedish: måste ) is given meaning within these accounts. It also examines how experiences of agency take shape in encounters with structural conditions such as temporary residence permits, income requirements, introduction programmes, and labour market discourses. The study draws on twelve semi-structured interviews with men attending Swedish adult vocational education (Yrkesvux) who arrived in Sweden during or after the 2015 European migrant crisis. The analysis was conducted using a narrative thematic approach and theoretically informed by Basil Bernstein’s concepts of pedagogic discourse, symbolic control, and linguistic codes.The analysis identifies how must is used to describe constrained agency: as a response to legal and economic compulsion; as strategic adaptation when previous qualifications are not recognised; as an expression of existential pressure and responsibility; and as a reflection of unacknowledged resources and inequality.The study contributes a linguistic and narrative dimension to research on integration and labour market participation. By analysing how the informants make sense of their trajectories in terms of things that they must do, it becomes possible to illuminate how migration-related and educational requirements are recontextualised in everyday life and shape life choices that often appear necessary rather than voluntary. These insights may inform policy and practice within adult education and labour market initiatives.