From Study Abroad Student to Published Researcher

Ava Matza, a political science major and rising senior who studied abroad on the Learning Abroad Center’s Summer in Sicily program in summer 2025, has published a research paper in The Tulane Journal of Policy & Political Economy. The paper, "Securing Borders, Sacrificing Rights: An Analysis of Italy's Externalization Strategy and Its Effects on Migrants," originated from original research Matza conducted in Sicily.

The Summer in Sicily program engages students in topics like human rights, migration, international law, and marine biology and ecology, both through coursework and a research project with a local human rights organization. In the Research in Sicily course, Matza learned how to conduct research on migration, asylum, and human rights in the Mediterranean, as well as how to bridge the gap between theory and practice.

Matza's research employed a qualitative, multi-method design—structured interviews, participant observation, and document analysis—to explore how Italy's bilateral migration agreements with third countries, along with European Union (EU) externalization policies, affect the protection of migrants’ rights. The EU externalization policies, according to Matza, aim to manage migration beyond borders through partnerships with third countries on border control and containment. She advocates for externalization agreements with more transparency and oversight, ensuring fair and territorially accessible asylum processes, and placing constraints on harmful externalization practices.

To fund her research, Matza applied for and received the International Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (I-UROP) Scholarship, which requires a minimum of 100 hours dedicated to on-site research.

Matza is optimistic that her months of research, writing, and learning on this issue helps others prioritize human rights in both literature and policy. "I hope it contributes to broader conversations about how states can pursue migration policies that are both effective and firmly rooted in human rights."