Municipality/Region

Catalonia, Spain

Summary

The Catalan Scholarship for Refugees, funded by the Generalitat de Catalunya (Government of Catalonia), gives refugees who have already started higher education but could not finish it in their countries of origin the opportunity to do so in Catalan universities. The programme is aimed at refugees who are located outside the EU and provides an alternative pathway to entry. Through the scholarship programme, selected refugees are able to go to Spain. Throughout their studies, they have free tuition and a stipend for living expenses.

Areas of integration covered by practice

• Integration of migrants in the education system
• Complementary pathways
• Mentoring for refugees

Background and purpose

The number of displaced people in the world is higher than ever, and some countries have a bigger share of the displaced people, making it necessary to find alternative pathways to resettlement for refugees.

This scholarship programme also aims to train refugees so that they can contribute to the future reconstruction of their countries of origin and thereby contribute to long-term peace in these countries.

Timeframe

This programme started in 2018 and is ongoing.

How does it work?

Candidates (located outside the EU) who want to participate in the programme enrol through an online form and send the required documents to the Catalan government. After checking that they fulfil the legal criteria (having a valid passport, having started or finished a university degree and being recognised as a refugee by UNHCR), the Catalan government sends their academic records to Catalan universities.

Each university prepares an exam for selected candidates to verify the academic documentation they provided.  A delegation of the Catalan government and Catalan universities goes to Lebanon to administer the exam and to interview candidates to assess their motivation.

Once the candidates are selected, they need to apply for a student visa at the Spanish embassy. They also start a basic Catalan and Spanish language course, so they have some language knowledge before they arrive in Catalonia.

Following arrival in Catalonia, their language abilities are assessed to determine whether they can start immediately with a bachelor’s or master’s degree, or if they first need to complete a language course. During the first week following arrival in Spain, the students are guided by a staff member from the university to help with necessary paperwork (e.g., registering in the municipality). After one week, the students are assigned a group of mentors who will guide them for one year to help them improve language skills and knowledge about Catalan society. 

The students have their tuition costs covered. They also receive a living stipend, which allows them to focus on their studies.

Results and evaluation

This programme was implemented as a pilot in 2018, with 18 students who came to Catalonia to proceed with university studies. Although it is still too early to evaluate the long-term outcome of the programme, the knowledge acquired during this pilot will lead to improvements in future editions of the programme.

Funding

The scholarship is funded directly by the Generalitat de Catalunya (Government of Catalonia). All universities are responsible for providing free tuition for the refugee students who are enrolled, as well as funding a language course (if required) prior to the start of the bachelor’s or master’s degree programmes. The annual budget for the programme is approximately €200,000.

Further information

Website of the practice