AMMAN — Some 250 Syrian refugees will be able to pursue vocational training at Jordan’s Yarmouk University thanks to a new scholarship programme, university officials announced on Monday.

The university’s Queen Rania Centre for Jordanian Studies and Community Service, in cooperation with UNESCO, opened applications on Monday for 250 scholarships for vocational diplomas to “provide displaced Syrians with better opportunities”, said Haitham Bani Salameh, president of the centre.

“This programme is a result of a study of the job market in the northern region, to evaluate the demand for certain professions,” he told The Jordan Times.

The nine-month diploma offers training in several fields, he said, to enable Syrians to integrate into the local job market.

“They are already good at different occupations. We aim to develop their skills in the fields they choose,” Bani Salameh added.

The only requirements are basic knowledge of English, Arabic and maths, he said. “No school or university diplomas are required, it is a vocational training programme,” he noted.

The centre is offering training in space and infrastructure management, nutrition, hotel and restaurant management, hospital and health services and medical tourism.

A social worker will be available throughout the training to offer psychological rehabilitation, he added.

“We want them to develop their skills to benefit the local community and their hometown when they return,” Bani Salameh said.

According to the university official, the programme focuses on two aims. “First, Syrian students interact with other students at the university, which will help them cooperate with Jordanians, and secondly, it will help in the long-term for the ‘post-war’ period,” he explained.

The programme will “promote mutual understanding”, and help reduce violence and unemployment rates in the community, Bani Salameh added.

“It can also open many doors for them, like job opportunities in foreign and Gulf countries.”

Candidates can submit their applications at the centre, located at Yarmouk University in Irbid or online via www.qrc.yu.edu.jo, Bani Salameh said.

Applicants must be aged between 17 and 30, and should attach their refugee ID card to their applications, he added.