Fobzu Scholarship Support

One way Fobzu supports access to education for young Palestinians is by providing scholarships to students in financial need. Not only do scholarships provide vital assistance for young people facing hardship, they are also an important source of hope to a generation growing up under occupation.

Fobzu supports students at universities across occupied Palestine, as well as at Birzeit.

Each Fobzu scholarship covers the fees of a university course for one year and we aim to provide support for students for the duration of a typical 4-year degree.

If you would like to help us provide financial support to young Palestinians wanting to continue their education, you can either make a donation to Fobzu or consider sponsoring a student.

Student Selection

At present, we provide scholarships through the Fobzu-UNRWA Scholarship Programme, the Fobzu-Ahdaf Scholarship Programme and directly through Birzeit University.

Fobzu-UNRWA scholarships are provided to Palestinian refugee students registered with UNRWA in Gaza and at Birzeit University, in the West Bank. Selection is conducted by UNRWA governed by ‘UNRWA Education Technical Instructions’ and overseen by local UNRWA Scholarship Advisory Committees. In the West Bank students are ranked using a score sheet that takes into account a variety of socio-economic factors and to a lesser extent, academic merit. In Gaza, scholarships are distributed according to a ranking of socio-economic need and secondarily, academic merit.

At Birzeit University, our students are selected on the basis of recommendation by the Grants and Financial Aid Committee at the Deanship of Student Affairs, a body comprising academics, university staff and student representatives. Students are identified for financial support based on the following criteria:

• Students who are in financial need
• Families of students registered for support with the Ministry of Social Affairs
• Students from families with one breadwinner because the other breadwinner doesn’t work, is sick (chronic disease), or deceased
• Students with more than one sibling enrolled in the university
• Students who have completed one semester with at least an average of 12 credit hours
• Student should be a regular student at the time of obtaining a grant
• Student’s cumulative grade point average should not be less than 70%
• Student should not have obtained a grant from any other source
• The primary determinant for obtaining these grants is based on two basic conditions: the students’ GPA is not less than 70% and he or she has a need for financial aid
• Donor requirements are also taken into account, if they do not conflict with the committee’s standards