Italy announces scholarships for refugee students

Rome: A call for scholarship applications from refugee students who want to study at Italian universities launched March 1. The scholarships are part of the sixth edition of the University Corridors for Refugees (Unicore) project. Applications are due by April 15.

The Unicore scholarship program, supported by nearly 40 Italian universities, will offer 67 refugee students support to take part in a two-year bachelor program.

Applications should be submitted by April 15, 2024.

The project, coordinated by the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), is supported by partners such as the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Italian Caritas, the Astalli Center, the Ethical Finance Foundation, the Waldensian Diaconia and the Gandhi Charity.

Refugee students in Kenya, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe will be selected on a merit basis as well as motivation. They will arrive in Italy in September 2024.

According to UNHCR estimates, people who are forced to flee due to wars and persecutions remain in exile for approximately 20 years on average.

A total of 76% of refugees worldwide live in low to middle-income countries where all too often the opportunities to rebuild their future in dignity are lacking.

As far as access to education is concerned, global figures remain dramatically negative: only 6% of refugees have access to tertiary education in comparison with 40% of the non-refugee population.

The Unicore project was launched as a response to these challenges, offering refugees the opportunity to reach Italy safely to continue their studies and rebuild their future.

The project hopes to give these individuals the chance to pursue professions aligned with their potential and wishes. The project aims to reach an enrollment rate in tertiary education for refugees of 15% by 2030.

Following its launch in 2019, during which students were accepted in two Italian universities, the project expanded to 44 more universities across Italy.

Over six years, the project has offered approximately 250 scholarships to refugee students.

In addition to the scholarships, the project, through its network of local partners, will provide students the needed support to successfully participate in the two-year bachelor program.