Challenges of Attending Private Higher Education for African Refugees: The Case of Eritrean Refugee Medical College Students in

Abstract

Nowadays, global movement and migration among African youth, which are the major concern and crisis to the international community, has become an apparent practice. The refugees are forced to leave their place of origin in fear of persecution due to their religious affiliation, political view or tribe (UNHCR, 2016). It is humanistic for the young refugees to go to school, as it has been explicitly pinpointed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 26 and Convention of the Rights of the Child, Article 28. That is why the government of Ethiopia in collaboration with UNHCR has been making higher education for Eritrean refugees accessible at various levels such as at first and second degree levels. Currently, there are about 1704 Eritrean refugee students in Ethiopia, out of whom 60 are at Master‘s level and the rest are doing their first degree. Also, there are 200 Eritrean refugee students doing their degree in private medical colleges in Ethiopia. The study deals with the challenges the Eritrean refugee students face while studying at MEDCO Bio and Africa Medial Colleges. Focus Group Discussion and interview instruments were employed to collect reliable data from 40 Eritrean refugee students, Head, Program Implementation and Coordination, and Education Officer at Administration for Refugee and Returnee Affairs office (ARRA). The findings showed that Eritrean refugee students faced challenges at MEDCO Bio and Africa Medical colleges, which could be categorized as Academic, Emotional/Psychological and Socio-cultural Challenges. Also arranging orientation session and placement examinations are the strategies employed by ARRA office to integrate Eritrean refugee students into higher education system in Ethiopia. The study suggested that there should be an improvement at micro system, i.e. the two Medial Colleges should organize a support system to help the Eritrean refugee students overcome their challenges and become successful in their academic career.