TERMS for grants for the 2024-2025 edition of the Transition course to university studies

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Please, send your questions and inquiries to refugee.support@ub.edu

Introduction

In September 2015, the University of Barcelona launched the Support Program for refugees and people from conflict areas (hereinafter the Program), managed by the Fundació Solidaritat UB. The launch of the Program reflects the University of Barcelona’s commitment to its social responsibility and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals proclaimed by the United Nations: specifically, with SDGs 4 (Inclusive, equitable, and quality education, and promotion of lifelong learning opportunities for all), 10 (Reduction of inequality within and among countries), and 11 (Inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable cities).

The Program includes, among other actions, the exemption from tuition fees for undergraduate and to official and non-interuniversity master’s degrees at the University of Barcelona, Spanish language studies for foreigners, accommodation in University of Barcelona dormitories, as well as access to psychological, legal, and medical support services.

However, the most innovative initiative within the Program has been the organisation of five editions of a transition course to university studies which, from the outset of providing comprehensive support for studies and accommodation, aims to promote enrolment in undergraduate (last two years of the degree) or master’s programs at the University of Barcelona by students who are refugees or in refugee-like situations, as defined by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR.

This initiative is aimed at non-EU students who are threatened and/or displaced in their countries of origin or refugees in first asylum or transit countries, and it is part of what UNHCR defines as complementary and safe pathways to the resettlement of refugees in third countries. In all five previous editions, as in this one, it is an initiative co-financed by the University of Barcelona, the Fundació Solidaritat UB, and the Directorate for Human Rights, Global Justice and International Cooperation of the Barcelona City Council.

It is the will of the University of Barcelona to call for these grants, mainly aimed at people who are part of the most vulnerable communities or social groups and who live in conflict zones or have been displaced to first asylum or transit countries.

1. General objectives

The grants have three main objectives:

• Promote access to higher education for university students who are refugees or in refugee-like situations in the terms defined by UNHCR, the educational and life projects of those who have been affected by armed conflicts or by different situations of violation of Human Rights due to the expression of political opinions, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, gender, ethnic or social minorities status, or any other reason.
• Promote complementary and safe pathways for refuge, following the recommendations and in the sense stated by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
• To strengthen the professional skills and future employability of university students, whether in the host countries or in their countries of origin, when return is possible and desired.

For informational purposes, the English version of the call for applications can be found here. In case of any discrepancy, the version in Catalan is binding.

2. Beneficiaries

To be eligible, applicants must meet the following requirements:

• Be in a refugee or refugee-like situation, as defined by the UNHCR. This implies that the applicants must have been forcibly displaced from their places of residence or be persecuted, or have a well-founded fear of persecution, due to conflict, violence or other circumstances that seriously undermine the public order, and/or due to their political opinions, religious beliefs, ethnic or social affiliation, sexual orientation, gender status, or any other circumstance. In all cases, applicants must prove their situation by means of documentary evidence, such as letters from governmental or non-governmental institutions, documentation issued by the UNHCR or any other agency of the United Nations, or any other material element that can be assessed.
• Be in a situation of vulnerability in terms of the effective exercise of Human, Economic and Social Rights. In this sense, the applicant must provide documentation or other material elements that sufficiently accredit the existence of this situation of vulnerability in their place of residence at the time of applying for aid.
• Be aged 26 or younger at the time of the deadline for submitting applications.
• Be a resident of a non-EU country and not hold Spanish nationality or any other European Union nationality, nor dual nationality, when one of the two is Spanish or from another European Union country.
• Have no prior knowledge of either Spanish or Catalan, given that one of the specific aims of the course that is the object of this call for applications is the learning of both languages.
• Explicitly manifest a social commitment and a commitment to Global Justice and, therefore, a willingness to engage with the local associative network in the defence of human rights.
• Sufficiently proof, as required by the University of Barcelona, having carried out university studies and/or hold a university degree that allows access to an official, non-interuniversity master’s degree at the UB or to the last two years (second cycle) of the UB-specific bachelor’s degree at UB’s own centers. The supporting documentation must be submitted in the original language and in English, French, Portuguese or Spanish. This documentation will be checked prior to the selection of candidates.
• Those already holding a degree cannot apply for another degree within the framework of this call for applications.
• Those already holding a master’s degree cannot apply for another master’s degree within the framework of this call for applications.
• The application for studies to be carried out within the framework of this call for applications must be coherent with the person’s academic trajectory.
• Apply for admission to official and non-interuniversity master’s degree programs or to the last two years of the second cycle of bachelor’s degree courses offered by UB faculties and schools, excluding affiliated centers and the degrees in Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy and Psychology. The UB’s course offerings can be found at the following addresses:
  • For information about Bachelor’s degrees: https://web.ub.edu/web/estudis/graus
  • For information about Master’s: https://web.ub.edu/web/estudis/masters-postgraus

Meeting eligibility requirements, providing truthful documentation that accredits the studies carried out and the documentary and true accreditation of the economic and social situation are necessary and essential conditions to be eligible for the grant.

3. Applicant commitments and obligations for receiving the grant

The beneficiaries commit to:

1. Complete the whole of the transition course, attending at least 80% of lectures and pass the assessment to credit the achievement.
2. Pass exams or relevant tests that accredit the acquisition of the B2 level of knowledge of Catalan and Spanish.
3. Pass exams or the relevant and tests that accredit specific knowledge in Human Rights.
4. Participate in all the educational activities included in the transition course, in activities related to the promotion and defence of Human Rights of the Fundació Solidaritat UB (FSUB), and in the activities carried out as part of the UB’s Support Programme for Refugees and People from Conflict-Affected Areas.
5. Comply with the academic requirements to remain at the University of Barcelona, in the case of studying the second two years of a Bachelor’s or official Master’s degree, immediately after passing the transition course.
6. Immediately report any incident that affects their legal or academic situation or that affects the normal development of their studies or coexistence.
7. Immediately report receiving other grants or starting remunerated professional activities that modify the situation of economic vulnerability previously accredited.
8. Comply with the rules of coexistence existing in the assigned accommodation.

Points 4 to 8 will remain compulsory if the scholarship coverage continues in subsequent academic years, together with the fulfilment of the specific conditions of the University of Barcelona’s rules on continuation of studies and of the legal requirements for residence in Spain.

4. Objective of the grant

The 10 grants are aimed at students who meet the requirements set out in point 2 of these conditions and who apply to continue their university studies and study the first two years of a second-cycle degree at a UB faculty or school (except for the degrees in Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy and Psychology) or an official non-interuniversity master’s degree offered by the University of Barcelona during the academic years 2025-2026, and, if applicable (two-year bachelor’s or master’s degree), 2026-2027, after completing a transition course to university studies, which will take place in the academic year 2024-2025.

The grants are individual and non-transferable, i.e. they are awarded to a specific individual person. There are no grants for accompanying persons or family members.

The total number of grants awarded is 10 for the academic year 2024-2025, consisting of:

• Exemption from tuition fees and taxes:
  • for the course of transition to university studies
  • in the event of passing the transition course, the master’s degree courses or the last two years (second cycle) of the bachelor’s degree, for the academic years 2025-2026 and, in the case of the two-year bachelor’s or master’s degree, 2026-2027, in accordance with the agreement of the Economic Committee of the Social Council of the University of Barcelona, dated 27 April 2021, in this regard. This exemption will be conditional on passing the minimum number of enrolled credits, within the terms established by the University of Barcelona’s regulations on continuation of studies and the administrative requirements for legal residence in Spain, and on the approval of the scholarship renewal application, which must be submitted for each academic year within the terms established in due course.
• Participation in language exchanges with people from the UB community.
• Full board accommodation in the facilities provided by the University of Barcelona, preferably in dormitories or university residences, in shared rooms for 2 or 3 people.
• 200 euros per month for pocket expenses.
• Psychological support through the resources available to the University of Barcelona and the FSUB.
• Legal advice on migration and asylum laws using the resources available to the University of Barcelona and the FSUB.
• Private medical insurance, with the limitation of the coverage corresponding to the contracted terms.
• Psycho-emotional support and academic guidance.
• Participation in programmes and projects for integration in the social and associative life of the University of Barcelona, the city of Barcelona and its metropolitan area.

5. Application

In order to apply for the grant, the following documentation is required:

• Fully completed application form. This form is available at the University of Barcelona’s Electronic Office and at the following website: https://www.solidaritat.ub.edu/2024_scholarship_application/
• Copy of valid and in force passport.
• Documentary evidence on accrediting the university education, as established in point 2 of these conditions. The documentation must be submitted in the original language and in any of the following languages: Spanish, French, Portuguese or English.
• Motivation letter from the student, of a maximum of 600 words, in which the applicant indicates their motivation for applying for the grant, their academic and personal background, the circumstances that have interrupted their academic trajectory, their expectations in relation to their training in the transition course and, subsequently, in their UB studies.
• Documentation (letter, certificate, legal document, or similar) accrediting the applicant’s refugee status or need for refuge as defined by the UNHCR: been forcibly displaced from their places of residence or be persecuted, or have a well-founded fear of persecution, due to conflict, violence or other circumstances that seriously undermine the public order, and/or due to their political opinions, religious beliefs, ethnic or social affiliation, sexual orientation, gender status, or any other circumstance. The documentation must have been provided by sufficiently accredited governmental or non-governmental institutions or agencies of the United Nations, and must be provided in any of the following languages: Spanish, French, English or Portuguese.
• Documentation (letter, certificate, legal document, or similar) that accredits the socio-economic vulnerability of the applicant. The documentation must have been provided by sufficiently accredited governmental or non-governmental institutions or by United Nations agencies, and must be provided in any of the following languages: Spanish, French, English or Portuguese.

The application, together with all required documentation, must be attached in PDF format to an e-mail and sent to the following address: refugee.support@ub.edu. The e-mail subject must be: Name_Surname_Application_ScholarshipUB.

The closing date for applications is 12 June 2024 at midnight (CEST).

6. Selection of candidates

The selection of candidates will be carried out by an Evaluation Committee made up of the following people:

• Vice-Rector for Internationalisation Policy of the University of Barcelona, who will act as President of the Committee and will have, if necessary, a casting vote.
• Vice-Rector for Equality, Inclusion and Gender of the University of Barcelona.
• Director of the Fundació Solidaritat UB, who will act as Secretary of the Committee.
• Director of the transition course to university studies.
• Coordinator of the UB’s Support Programme for Refugees and People from Conflict Areas.
• Director of Human Rights, Global Justice and International Cooperation, Barcelona City Council.
• Technician at the Directorate of Human Rights, Global Justice and International Cooperation of Barcelona City Council.

Applicants who do not meet all the requirements mentioned in point 2 will be excluded from the selection process.

Any defect or deficiency in the documentation submitted won’t be rectified and will lead to exclusion.

Applications that have not been excluded will be assessed on the basis of the documentation provided. In cases where there are doubts about the interpretation of the documentation provided, specialised staff from the UB Solidarity Foundation may conduct online interviews with candidates in order to clarify these doubts.

The documentation will be assessed in accordance with the following criteria:

• Academic documentation (score 0-10).
• Coherence between the studies carried out and the UB studies selected (score 0-10).
• Situation of economic and human rights vulnerability (score 0-10).
• Commitment to global justice and human rights (score 0-5).

Taking into account the documentation provided by the applicants and any clarifications that the committee may have received, the formally constituted Evaluation Committee will draw up a prioritised list of the selected candidates, taking into account that women candidates represent at least 50% of the selected candidates.

Priority is given to the selection of female candidates because gender is, objectively, an element of greater vulnerability in situations of conflict and forced displacement. It is in this sense that it is intended that women candidates represent at least 50% of the total number of selected candidates.

Additionally, in view of the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, especially after 7 October 2023, priority will also be given to applications from Palestinian candidates who, at the time of applying for the grant, are in one of the following circumstances:

• Residents currently in the occupied Palestinian territories, or before October 7th, 2023.
• Refugees under UNRWA protection or are recipients of UNRWA support.
• Residents in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and, at the time of applying for this grant, outside these Territories as beneficiaries of a scholarship awarded during the 2022-2023 academic year, and are unable to return there.

In accordance with the above, 5 Palestinian candidates who meet the conditions of the previous paragraph will be selected, prioritizing female candidates up to a maximum of 3 of these 5.

Secondly, the remaining 5 candidates will be selected, giving priority to female candidates, up to a maximum of 3 out of the 5.

The Evaluation Committee will also draw up, following the same criteria, a reserve list of candidates, so that, in the event of withdrawal, resignation, failure to obtain an international student visa within a maximum of 3 months from the date of notification of acceptance by email from the FSUB, or the impossibility of obtaining the grant, in order of priority, the candidates on the reserve list will have access to the grant, or the impossibility of materializing the grant, for any reason , access to the grant will be granted to the candidates on the reserve list, in order of priority, provided that their arrival occurs before the start of the transition course, and in any case, no later than 30 October 2024.

7. Resolution and communication

The Evaluation Committee will submit the provisional list of selected candidates and the reserve list to the Rector, who will issue the resolution on the awarding of grants for the 2024-2025 transition course. The resolution will be published on the University of Barcelona’s electronic office and will also be made available on the FSUB website.

The University of Barcelona, through the FSUB, which will manage the grants, will contact the selected candidates to communicate the award by e-mail.

In any case, the scholarship is conditioned, sine qua non, on obtaining the corresponding international student visa within a maximum of 3 months from the communication via email from the FSUB and the subsequent regularisation of the legal situation to reside in Spanish territory. The candidate must have regularised their legal situation in Spanish territory in order to benefit from the grant that is the object of this call for applications.

8. Acceptance of the grant and procedures for its materialisation

Once the award resolution has been communicated, the selected candidate will have 7 working days to provisionally accept the grant by replying to the award notification by e-mail. Failure to accept will be understood as a renunciation of the grant. In the event of renunciation of the grant, and in the understanding that the grant remains vacant, the University of Barcelona, through the FSUB, will contact the candidate on the reserve list who occupies the first place and, subsequently, in strict order of priority, in order to inform them of the provisional award of the grant.

Once the grant has been provisionally accepted, the person selected must immediately start the relevant procedures with the Spanish diplomatic and consular authorities in order to obtain a long-stay visa to study in Spain. Neither the University of Barcelona nor the FSUB can guarantee the granting of the requested visa or influence in any way the visa application process.

The final receipt of the grant is conditioned on obtaining the student visa within a maximum period of 3 months from the email notification.

Once the visa has been obtained and the legal situation of residence has been regularised, the beneficiary will proceed to the definitive acceptance of the grant by signing the corresponding acceptance document.

During the visa application process, the selected candidate will have the support of the University of Barcelona, through the FSUB, in order to provide the necessary supporting documentation required by the Spanish diplomatic and consular authorities, as well as to resolve doubts about the coverage of the grant and the arrival situation in Spain.

The grants do not cover the payment of administrative or other costs incurred in obtaining the student visa. They also do not cover travel costs from the applicant’s place of residence to Barcelona.

9. Payment and management of the grants

The instruction and management of the grants will correspond to the FSUB in all the procedures that are required.

The receipt of the grant may be subject to modification depending on the following situations:

• If the student receives salaries and/or professional fees and/or other income which, added to the monthly amount received as pocket money, would amount to 50% or more of the minimum interprofessional salary, the student would no longer receive the pocket money, while retaining other coverages.
• If the student receives salary payments and/or professional fees and/or other income which, added to the monthly amount received in the form of pocket money, would amount to 100% or more of the minimum interprofessional salary, the student would no longer receive the pocket money and full board accommodation while retaining other coverages.

The student benefiting from the grant must immediately inform the FSUB of receiving salary and/or professional remunerations and/or other income referred to in this section of the conditions of eligibility. Failure to provide this information will result in the termination of the grant.

Furthermore, the grant will terminate if substantial and evident income is received, significantly altering the beneficiary’s economic situation, indicating they no longer face the vulnerability that justified the grant.

Students must also inform if they are joining a support programme for people in a situation of international protection or another programme or project that covers all or part of the student’s accommodation, sustenance, etc. In this case, the UB will study the coverage of the grant.

10. Continuity of the grant

In order to continue to benefit from the grant after the first academic year, students must have passed the transition course to university studies. In order to do so, they must have attended at least 80% of the lectures; passed the exams or other assessment tests that accredit the acquisition of the B2 level of knowledge of Catalan and Spanish languages, and passed the exams and assessment tests that accredit specific knowledge of Human Rights. Likewise, in order to continue benefiting from the grant after the first academic year, students must have regularised their legal residence status.

Students who pass the transition course to university studies during the academic year 2024-2025 will, after completing the necessary procedures and fulfilling the academic admission requirements, be admitted to university master’s degree courses or the last two years of a bachelor’s degree (second cycle) at the University of Barcelona, to be taken during the academic year 2025-2026.

In order to be eligible for the continuation of the grant during the academic year 2025-2026, the candidate must apply formally, using the standard form, before May 30th 2025. The application will be accepted automatically if the candidate maintains the situation that led to their initial admission, has passed the transition course referred to in these conditions, and has been accepted and, if applicable, enrolled in the corresponding UB courses for the academic year 2025-2026, in accordance with the academic criteria for student admission. If the application is accepted, the grant will be maintained in the same terms as those established for the transition year and listed in section 4 of these conditions.

The same continuation application procedure will apply, in the following year, for students who pass their studies enrolled in the academic year 2025-2026 and choose to complete their master’s degree or final year of the bachelor’s degree in the academic year 2026-2027.

11. Reasons for termination of the grant

The grant will immediately terminate if the University of Barcelona or the FSUB, the body managing the aid, has reliable knowledge of the lack of veracity of the documentation provided by the student with regard to their previous academic record, their economic, social or human rights vulnerability and, in general, in relation to the accreditation of the eligibility conditions established in section 2 of these conditions, without prejudice, if applicable, to the initiation of the corresponding reimbursement actions.

The end of the grant will also occur if any of the following situations arise:

• The student does not complete the transition course or does not attend a minimum of 80% of lectures.
• The student does not pass the exams or assessment tests of the transition course.
• The student completes the studies for which he/she has received the grant.
• The student voluntarily renounces the grant.
• The student fails to comply the University of Barcelona’s continuation of studies regulations for the studies that they are pursuing.
• The student fails to comply with any of the obligations established in section 3 of these bases.
• The student commits acts that constitute a fraud in the assessment tests of the studies they are pursuing.
• The student carries out actions that seriously affect coexistence and respect towards other students, teaching staff, roommates or staff of the centres where they study or the accommodation where they live.
• The student does not communicate the information referred to in section 9 of these bases.

In all cases, except for completing studies and voluntary renunciation of the grant, the FSUB after analysing the corresponding documentation and hearing from the interested party, will issue a report recommending appropriate measures. The Rector of the University of Barcelona, considering this report, may decide to withdraw the grant, or whatever else may be appropriate.

12. Incompatibilities of the grants

These grants are incompatible with any other grants, subsidies or scholarships, awarded for the same purpose and/or that suppose income covering the benefits provided by the University of Barcelona’s grants, as listed in section 4 of these bases, or that would directly provide these benefits.

In the event that these other grants, subsidies or scholarships partially cover benefits and do not, in themselves, cover all the benefits referred to in the aforementioned section 4 to be received, they will be compatible with the University of Barcelona’s salary in the same terms as those set out in section 9 of these bases, regarding salary or professional remuneration, provided that the grant, subsidy or scholarship allows compatibility.

Students receiving other grants, subsidies or scholarships must inform the FSUB immediately of the receipt of these. Failure to provide this information will result in the immediate loss of the grant.

13. Acceptance of the bases

The submission of the grant application implies full acceptance of these bases.

By submitting the application form, applicants declare and accept responsibility for the truthfulness of the information, data and documents provided and for the compliance with the requirements, conditions and obligations established in these bases.

14. Personal data protection

1. The controllers of your personal data are the General Secretariat of the University of Barcelona, with postal address Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, 585, 08007 Barcelona and e-mail address secretaria.general@ub.edu, and the FSUB, with postal address Carrer Melcior de Palau, 140, 08014 Barcelona and e-mail address solidaritatub@ub.edu.
2. The purpose of processing your personal data is to manage the grants.
3. The legal basis is the fulfilment of a public interest mission (Law 1/2003, of 19 February, on governing Catalan universities; Organic Law 2/2023, of 22 March, on the University System; and Law 38/2003, of 17 November, General Subsidies). Regarding special categories of data that you may provide, it will be with your explicit consent, which you may revoke at any time without retroactive effect.
   According to Article 9.1 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of 27 April 2016, the special categories of data are personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, or trade union membership, and the processing of genetic data, biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person, data concerning health or data concerning a natural person’s sex life or sexual orientation.
4. Your data will be kept for the time necessary to fulfil the purpose for which they were collected and to determine any possible liabilities that may arise from their processing.
5. The data recipients are the University of Barcelona and the FSUB, as joint controllers, and, where applicable, data processors. Likewise, the Barcelona City Council is also a data recipient necessary to carry out the functions entrusted to it within the framework of the Evaluation Committee. Likewise, we will publish the Rector’s resolution with the list of selected candidates and the reserve list, as well as the rest of the corresponding acts, in the places indicated in these bases, with the necessary data of the beneficiaries and the reserve list candidates. No other transfer of data is contemplated, unless legally required. In such a case only the necessary data will be sent.
6. You can access the data, request rectification, suppression, opposition, portability or the limitation, by writing to:- The Secretary General’s Office of the University of Barcelona by postal mail (Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, 585, 08007 Barcelona), or by e-mail (secretaria.general@ub.edu).

   – The FSUB by post mail (Carrer Melcior de Palau, 140, 08014 Barcelona), or by e-mail (solidaritatub@ub.edu).

   You must attach a photocopy of your NIE, passport or any other valid document that you can use as a proof of identity.

7. If you consider that your rights have not been adequately addressed, you can contact the data protection officer of the UB by postal mail (Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, 585, 08007 Barcelona) or by e-mail (protecciodedades@ub.edu), or to the data protection officer of the FSUB by postal mail (Carrer Melcior de Palau, 140, 08014 Barcelona) or by e-mail (dpd.solidaritatub@ub.edu).
8. You also have the right to file a complaint with the Catalan Data Protection Authority.
9. By submitting the application, the interested party declares having read this right to information and, in the event that they provide personal data of third parties, they undertake to provide them with the content of this bases.