Earlier this week, Thom de Graaf, chairman of The Netherlands Association of Universities of Applied Sciences, said universities of applied sciences should welcome refugees who want to study with open arms. This, he believes, fits with the emancipatory tradition of HBO.

This week, 181 refugees started studying at a Dutch university or university of applied sciences with the help of the Foundation for Refugee Students UAF, and another 59 started an MBO programme. The UAF provides financial support and counsels students in their programmes and in finding a job.

Often highly educated
Iranians are still the largest group, but more and more Syrians are joining the ranks. ‘Syrians are often highly educated,’ says Petra Veltman of the UAF. ‘Like Iranians, they can often start very quickly.’ The UAF students are predominantly male, mostly between twenty and thirty years of age.

The UAF expects the number of Syrian students to grow in the years to come: about two years pass between the moment refugees are selected and the time they are actually able to start their study programme. ‘Preparation takes time,’ says Veltman. ‘People have to learn Dutch and bring their knowledge up to date.’
Due to the civil war in Syria, the number of refugees has increased in recent years. In 2008, fifteen Syrian refugees were given residence permits after requesting asylum. In 2014, they numbered over eight thousand.

Currently, the UAF is assisting a total of 1,060 students, with another 1,285 prospective students still in the preparation phase. Not all refugees are studying with help from the UAF. The most recent data is from 2010: according to Statistics Netherlands (CBS), 2,320 refugees had been enrolled in bachelor programmes and 190 had been enrolled in master programmes.

HOP, Petra Vissers