Dr Sanne van Oosten
Senior Researcher
Sanne van Oosten is a Senior Researcher at the University of Oxford’s School of Anthropology & Museum Ethnography (SAME). Her research focuses on ethnic, racial, religious, gender and sexual inequalities in employment, housing, childcare and politics.
She completed her PhD in Political Science at the University of Amsterdam in 2024, where she examined public attitudes towards diversity in politics and the political representation of Muslims in Europe. Following her PhD, she worked on the Horizon 2020 EqualStrength project, investigating discrimination experienced by ethnic and racial minorities across several European countries. Her research has explored discrimination in employment, housing and childcare, as well as how minorities understand and respond to experiences of discrimination.
Van Oosten currently leads a project on hiring discrimination against ethnic minority youth in England. Using large-scale field experiments, the project investigates barriers faced by young ethnic minority jobseekers and other disadvantaged groups, including young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), care-leaver status and criminal records. The project aims to identify effective employer practices for reducing discrimination and improving access to employment opportunities.
Her work combines experimental and survey methods to study discrimination, political behaviour and social inequalities. She has published in leading journals, including Electoral Studies, European Political Science Review and Survey Research Methods. Beyond academia, her research has been featured in international media outlets such as The New York Times, New York Magazine, Süddeutsche Zeitung and Haaretz. She has also discussed her work on television and radio, including appearances on Al Jazeera English, BBC Radio, NPR, Nieuwsuur and Hart van Nederland. In addition, she has provided research-based advice to policymakers, civil society organisations and government bodies on issues relating to diversity, discrimination, migration and political representation.