Following the substantial influx of migrants to Sweden in recent decades, the socioeconomic integration processes of migrants have become a key focus for scholars and policymakers. In this thesis, I acknowledge the multifaceted role of education for both individuals and society, and aim to describe, explain, and examine the determinants and geographical manifestation of educational attainment and educational enrollment trajectories of adult migrants in Sweden, employing quantitative analyses and longitudinal register data. This thesis consists of an overarching introduction and three scientific articles, building upon empirical studies and a wide-ranging body of theories and conceptual frameworks, including human capital and neoclassical theories, the aspirations-capabilities framework, and the concept of lifelong learning, reflecting different conventions and assumptions relevant to this thesis.

Paper I examines the sources of educational information for migrants upon arrival and the time to registration of migrants’ education over a ten-year follow-up period. The paper shows that the Swedish Employment Service and a survey of foreign-born individuals are the primary sources providing self-reported information about migrants’ education upon arrival. Using event history analysis, I show that registration of migrants' education improves with longer residency in Sweden, particularly two years after arrival, with variations among migrant groups. The majority of refugees and family migrants have their education registered after two years, while for Nordic migrants, length of residency has little impact on registration of their education.

Paper II, drawing upon neoclassical migration theories and the aspirations-capabilities framework, characterizes migrants’ initial settlement patterns across the urban hierarchy, considering their educational attainment, alongside region of origin, migration purpose, and stage in the life course. The findings reveal that education strongly influences the spatial settlement patterns of migrants, with higher- and medium-educated migrants being more likely to reside in metropolitan areas. The results also show that rural settlement is particularly common among Nordic and African migrants, resettled refugees, older migrants, and families with young children.

Paper III uses sequence analysis to examine the educational enrollment trajectories of refugees. Five typical pathways are identified: exclusion, short language courses and early career, mixed career, long participation in municipal adult education and late career, and emigration. The results show that refugees from vulnerable backgrounds, including women, older, lower educated refugees, and those originating from less developed countries, often face marginalization and exclusion in Sweden, while those from less vulnerable backgrounds are more likely to follow an early career path.

The thesis increases awareness of the advantages and disadvantages associated with using register data on migrants' education. It also demonstrates that migrants' educational attainment is a strong determinant affecting their initial spatial sorting patterns. Furthermore, it shows that refugees follow different educational enrollment pathways with varying labor market outcomes depending on their pre-migration educational level, gender, age, place of living in Sweden, presence of children in the family, use of parental leave, as well as structural factors.