BOSTON ― Colleges in the U.S. are opening their doors ― and their financial aid ― to Syrian refugees.
Over the past year, at least a dozen schools have promised to cover full or partial tuition for Syrian refugees who are accepted for enrollment. They join a coalition of more than 60 colleges that have started providing scholarships to Syrian students since the country’s civil war began in 2011.
So far, colleges have awarded scholarships to more than 150 Syrian students. It’s an effort organized by the Institute of International Education, a nonprofit group that offers financial help to students who are displaced by violence and natural disasters.
Among more than 11 million Syrians who have fled their homes, the institute estimates that at least 100,000 are qualified to attend college but have few options to do so.
“We’ve never really had those numbers before,” said Allan Goodman, president of the institute. “The Syrian civil war is more complicated and at a much larger scale than any other crisis.”
To help refugees resume their studies, an initial wave of schools volunteered to offer financial aid soon after war broke out. Since then, many have followed amid pressure from their students.
The University of Southern California is offering to pay full tuition for as many as six refugees starting next year. Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania pledged to cover $25,000 a year for five more.
