As former President Nelson Mandela astutely said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
Education is part of the fabric of the South African Jewish community, and at Telfed, we continue to uphold these values through the services and programmes available to ex-South Africans living in Israel.
For Tali, a new 25-year-old olah from Johannesburg, studying after school was a pipedream. Soon after making Aliyah, she met with Yael Strausz, Telfed’s Employment advisor, who explained the opportunities available to her through the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration and the Student Authority*. “I am applying for different universities and focusing on improving my Hebrew now,” said Tali. “Young olim have amazing opportunities for a bright future.”
A new door has opened for South African students who wish to study medicine with the launch of a pre-med degree in English at Ariel University. “On completion of the three-year pre-med degree, students can then apply for a four-year postgraduate medical degree at the Medical School of International Health at Ben Gurion University, with acceptance dependent on MCAT scores and a personal interview,” said Telfed CEO Dorron Kline, whose dream of a seven-year medical degree in Israel, in English, has now been realised.
On 25 March 2022, over 400 Telfed scholarship recipients attended Telfed’s annual scholarship ceremony in Tel Aviv. Telfed’s scholarship programmes include PRAS (a volunteer-based programme), the Samson SASI (South Africans Studying in Israel) programme, and scholarships allocated based on proven financial need to Israelis of South African lineage.
Through these programmes, education extends beyond the classroom with a volunteering component. For South African students who receive a SASI scholarship, participation in social, cultural and volunteer activities inculcates an awareness of Israeli culture and society that can’t be learned from a textbook. In April, SASI students attended a fascinating sensory awareness event at Nalaga’at in Tel Aviv with dinner in the dark, following by a sign language workshop.
In his address to students at the Annual Scholarship Ceremony, Telfed Chairman Robby Hilkowitz said, “Education is the single most important factor for personal advancement and, therefore, it is incumbent on us to help others and give back to society, thereby making our own happiness less transient”.
* For more information about integration, education, job opportunities and other klita (absorption) related questions, please be in touch with our team (daniela@telfed.org.il). Telfed offers free career and klita counselling both before and after your Aliyah. www.telfed.org.il
Telfed www.telfed.org.il Email: info@telfed.org.il
Published in the PDF edition of the May 2022 issue – Click here to read it.
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