PRESS RELEASE

Higher education institutions have made agreements on the implementation of joint measures for the admission of refugees into higher education. The main agreements are to improve the facilitation of language courses for refugees and to increase the admission of refugees into higher education. Difficulties faced by refugees seeking to enter higher education and the labour market also need to be identified and resolved.

Concrete measures will be set out in due course by a coalition of participating parties. The agreements are the result of a round table discussion on Wednesday evening between universities of applied sciences and research universities from the Randstad area, the Netherlands Association of Universities of Applied Sciences, the VSNU, the Foundation for Refugee Students (UAF), ECHO, EP-Nuffic, the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. The round table discussion was prompted by the widely shared sentiment within the Dutch higher education sector that it has a vital role to play in alleviating the refugee crisis.