DAFI students attend a workshop in Berlin held by Kiron, an NGO providing open access to education for refugees through digital solutions. © UNHCR/Gordon Welters

Dear fellow Vice-Chancellors, Presidents, Rectors and Principals of Higher Education Institutions,

You know, better than anyone, the crucial role that education plays in all our lives. Education imparts knowledge and skills for life. It expands minds and gives students the chance to forge their own futures. Education is life-changing.

For far too many refugees, however, education remains out of reach. Of the 7.1 million refugee children of school age in the world today, more than half – 3.7 million – are out of school. At primary level, 63 per cent of refugee children are in school, compared to a global level of 91 per cent. As they get older, those figures drop alarmingly. At secondary level, only 24 per cent of refugee children are enrolled in school, compared to a global level of 84 per cent.

The consequences of this are as predictable, only 3 per cent of young refugee women and men have access to some form of higher education, versus a global enrolment figure of 37 per cent. This gap persists even though it is widely acknowledged that higher education is the key to better employment, greater self-reliance, sustainable livelihoods, leadership and more – especially in communities in greatest need of such benefits and opportunities.

It is this urgent situation that is the focus of our letter to you today. Governments, humanitarian workers, development agencies and their many partners have their roles and duties – but it cannot be solely their responsibility. It is up to us, as members of the higher education community, to step up and ensure that all aspiring scholars, especially the most vulnerable, receive a full education of good quality.

For refugees, the barriers to accessing and completing higher education are considerable – from tuition fees and living costs to language barriers, from a lack of documentation proving prior learning to the refusal of some institutions to recognise and accept what certification refugees are able to provide.

Today we are calling on you to join Universities such as Bard College in Berlin, University of Sussex, in the United Kingdom and Arizona State University in the United States are stepping up to make a difference – by providing scholarships, tuition waivers and access to online and blended degree programmes to refugees and to accept refugees who are lacking documentation of prior learning so that they can have access to a higher education. Our goal is to raise that 3 per cent enrolment figure to 15 per cent by 2030 (#15by30). Without your help in overcoming the many barriers refugees face, it will not be possible.

The forthcoming Global Refugee Forum in December is the moment to start making this a reality. We urge Vice-Chancellors and Principals of Higher Education Institutions to join us in taking action so that refugees have fair access to degrees, connected education and vocational programmes. Higher education must not only be desirable, it must also be achievable. As educators, volunteers and campaigners, we need to turn this around. Please join us in making this a reality for young refugees.

Please see 5 actions that Universities can take to support:

Offer scholarships and tuition waivers to refugee students. Create and develop connected learning programmes. Support and partner with universities in the top refugee-hosting countries. Encourage student groups to welcome and support refugee students through language training and support for cultural integration On 25 November, the world community sent a strong signal to higher education institutions to accept refugees lacking sufficient documentation when UNESCO’s General Conference adopted the Global Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education. Find out how your university can better support refugees who are lacking documentation

Signatories

Adams State University

American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admission Officers

Arizona State University

AUF (Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie)

Bard College, Berlin

Caritas Diocese of Salford

Colorado Department of Higher Education

Ecole Internationale de Genève

Educational Credential Evaluators

Emily Griffith Technical College

Global Platform for Syrian Students/Rapid Response

Habesha Project

Indiana University

Institute of International Education

Libraries Without Borders

Mechanism for Higher Education in Emergencies

National University of Political Studies and Public Administration – Bucharest

Refugee Law Initiative, School of Advanced Study,University of London

Student Action for Refugees

The University of Sussex

UNESCO

University of Essex

West University of Timișoara

Universities announcing pledges to provide scholarships today led by STAR and City of Sanctuary: