Bar-Ilan University distributed NIS 13 million shekels in scholarships to its students affected by the war, the university announced Tuesday.
After the massacre carried out by Hamas terrorists on October 7, some 2,500 Bar-Ilan students were called up for reserve duty, while approximately 200 were forced to leave their homes.
For this reason, shortly after the war broke out, the university decided to start an emergency fund for its student reservists, launching a crowdfunding campaign and encouraging students, employees and alumni to become campaign ambassadors.
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The campaign raised around NIS 20 million from donors and friends of the University in Israel and around the world.
A comprehensive plan
The first batch of scholarships given out earlier this week totaled NIS 13 million. The grantees received between. NIS 1,000-6,000.
"This is the implementation of the financial phase of our ‘Academic Vest’ plan to support reservists, evacuees and spouses of reservists,” said Bar-Ilan University Deputy President and CEO Zohar Yinon. “This is a plan that includes exemptions from up to three courses, academic credits, reinforcements, personal mentors, and course recordings.”
“Each section of the plan has required unprecedented preparation and budget rerouting of orders of magnitude not required in the past, all in order to assist those who are protecting us and maintaining the security of Israel,” he added.
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According to figures from data received by Bar Ilan, 23% of its student reservists are female and half of them have served for more than 30 days.
The highest number of students called up to the reserves (37%) has been registered at the university’s Kofkin Faculty of Engineering, followed by the School of Business Administration (22%), and the Martin (Szusz) Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology (20%).
This article was written in cooperation with Bar-Ilan University.