DAAD enables Syrian refugees in the Middle East including Turkey to study in the region

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Special programme financed by the EU’s “Madad Fund”

Bonn, 26/04/2016. The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) facilitates access to education for Syrian refugees based in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt. In addition to language courses and short-term university places, more than 300 full scholarships are also being offered in the region. €12 million are available for this purpose until 2019. The programme is financed by the EU Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian Crisis, known as the Madad Fund.

While 20 per cent of Syrians aged 18 to 24 completed a university degree before the outbreak of war, the proportion among Syrian refugees has currently dropped to below five per cent. The “Higher and Further Education Opportunities and Perspectives for Syrians” (HOPES) programme is geared towards Syrians who are qualified to study and based in the main host countries in the region and aims to facilitate their access to higher education.

“By facilitating access to tailor-made academic programmes in the host countries, we are offering these young people and their families long-term perspectives in the region. These future professionals will be urgently needed to rebuild Syria when the time comes,” says DAAD President Prof. Margret Wintermantel.

The programme initially offers Syrian refugees counselling on available study options in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt. Full scholarships are offered in addition to preparatory and language courses. The DAAD implements all the measures of this programme in cooperation with its partners British Council, Campus France and Nuffic.

Applicants are selected on the basis of academic potential, with social factors also playing a role. This is intended to ensure that applicants from disadvantaged families are also given a chance. Close cooperation with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is planned to this end.

Background

The DAAD has offered programmes for refugees both in the region and in Germany since 2014. What is new though, is the scope of the European cooperation in the implementation of HOPES. An increase of funding with contributions from third parties is possible.