Reichman University: A Warm Welcome to All

If you visit the lovely campus of Reichman University (formerly IDC Herzliya) and ask random students about their life stories, you may be surprised by their answers. This academic year, over 2,300 undergraduate and graduate students who are enrolled at Reichman’s Raphael Recanati International School (RRIS) hail from 90 countries around the world. In fact, students at both RRIS and the Hebrew-speaking section represent all walks of life and a wide range of different demographics.

“Reichman University’s founding mission statement is based on the humanistic Zionism of Herzl, Ben-Gurion, Jabotinsky and Begin, as well as on Israel’s Declaration of Independence and the values of a Jewish and democratic State of Israel,” asserts Jonathan Davis, Head of the Raphael Recanati International School and VP of Reichman University for External Relations. “We practice what we preach when it comes to diversity. We have students from all corners of the world.”

Support for Ethiopian-Israelis

Reichman University is especially welcoming to Ethiopian-Israeli students, most of whom are the 2nd or 3rd generation born in Israel and come from challenging socioeconomic environments. Through a special program called “Israel at Heart,” the university seeks out top students from this community and offers them full tuition as well as monthly stipends. Most participants in this program completed their IDF service as commanders.

“Close to 250 have already graduated from the program and have found gainful employment in key posts, contributing to Israeli society as entrepreneurs, businesspeople, lawyers, accountants, civil servants, etc. They can be found working in government ministries, NGOs, the media, hedge funds and the high-tech sector,” notes Davis. Several of the Ethiopian-Israeli alumni have been accepted to top universities around the world for advanced studies, including a Rhodes scholar who attended Oxford.

By giving these young people the opportunity to reach their full potential academically and professionally, this program helps fight unfortunate stereotypes and makes a real impact on Israeli society.

A new home for Ukrainian refugees

When Russia invaded Ukraine last year, the subsequent influx of refugees who arrived in Israel from both Ukraine and Russia posed many challenges. “Reichman University stepped up to the plate to assist some of these outstanding individuals,” Davis asserts, adding that on occasion the university recruited prospective candidates while they were still in Ukraine. “There is nothing more heartening that later seeing them fulfill their dreams and helping them keep their heads above water.”

One of these students is 19-year-old Vladyslava Talan, who fled her hometown of Dnipro in central Ukraine with her mother and young brothers one week after the war broke out. At the time, she was in her third year of studying International Economic Relations at two private Ukrainian universities. Jewish organizations helped the family escape to Moldova and then to Israel, leaving behind both Vladyslava’s father and stepfather. “When the war started, I cried all the time. I couldn’t stand the stress and asked to go to Israel,” she recalls.

After a harrowing two-week journey, they arrived in Herzliya, where they had a relative. “We were the first refugees to settle in Herzliya, and when we arrived, the mayor visited us. He brought gifts and asked about our lives,” recalls Helen Pulina-Lozynska, Vladyslava’s mother. The mayor then immediately told Jonathan Davis about Vladyslava, whose studies had been interrupted, and Davis contacted the family, promising to do everything he could to help. "We had a really good talk. He really wanted to help me,” she remembers. Thanks to his efforts and a generous scholarship from the Parasol Foundation, Vlasyslava began studying Government and Sustainability at RRIS last Fall and was given a room in Reichman’s dorms.

“The university is fantastic. The teachers are great and I’m learning so much. And socially, it’s amazing – everyone is so nice and supportive,” Vladyslava gushes. Her mother adds that the level of education at Reichman is much higher than at the Ukrainian universities and she is very impressed with the academic curriculum at Reichman. “It’s just hard that all my friends can go to their home countries for the holidays and I can’t,” says Vladyslava. “It’s crazy how much my life has changed in the past year. I feel bad that I have a great new life while the war is continuing in Ukraine.”

Making academic studies possible

Another group which Reichman welcomes and nurtures consists of young Israelis from development towns and other parts of the country’s geographic and economic periphery. The university’s “Ray of Light” program awards scholarships to students who would not otherwise be able to afford higher education. These students receive approximately 90% of the tuition fee as well as personal and academic mentoring throughout their studies.

“This program is for students who didn’t succeed in high school, often because their parents weren’t in a position to help them in spite of the fact that they are veteran members of Israeli society,” Davis elaborates. Candidates for the “Ray of Light” program take a special test which checks their aptitude. Those who are accepted take part in a preparatory year before officially starting their academic studies. During that year, they hone their basic skills in such subjects as Mathematics and English, in order to facilitate their integration at the university. A majority of the participants successfully complete degrees in such subjects as Business Management, Computer Science, Communications and others.

“The ‘Ray of Light’ program promotes diversity and the Jewish ethic that if you save one person – even metaphorically – it’s as though you have saved the whole world,” notes Davis with pride.

Recently, Reichman University took an additional step towards enhancing diversity, when it signed a collaboration agreement with Google Israel. The idea is to establish an academic program for individuals from Israel’s ultra-Orthodox community, especially those from socio-economically challenged neighborhoods. During the new one-year program, participants will be trained in Computer Programming and, after completing the program, will be integrated into Israel’s high-tech ecosystem, which is thirsty for more computer programmers. This initiative was made possible thanks to a $25 million grant from Google, which will provide scholarships covering 100% of the costs for 500 participants a year for five years.

“All these programs add diversity to our campus and, later, to society. We believe it’s what the country needs,” Jonathan Davis concludes.

About Reichman University

Reichman University (formerly IDC Herzliya) is Israel’s only private, non-profit university. Founded in 1994 as the brainchild of renowned Israeli Professor Uriel Reichman and modeled after Ivy League universities in the U.S., Reichman University has changed the face of higher education in Israel. The university’s founders sought to create an Israeli institution in which personal achievements go hand in hand with social responsibility, emphasizing initiative and leadership alongside community service.

Reichman University is dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in education and research, combining academic study with practical, hands-on training and fostering innovative thinking. In addition to giving students the tools they need to become leaders both in Israel and abroad, the university is committed to strengthening Israel’s society and economy.

The Raphael Recanati International School (RRIS) at Reichman University is the largest international school of higher education in Israel, with all classes taught in English. Over 2,000 students from 90 different countries are enrolled at RRIS at any given time. They study towards a large selection of degree programs:

BA degrees in Psychology, Business, Business and Economics, Communications, Government, Government and Sustainability, Computer Science, Entrepreneurship and Business, and Entrepreneurship and Computer Science.

Master’s degrees in Government, Financial Economics, Organizational Behavior and Development, and Behavioral Economics, as well as a 1-year MBA, MBA in Healthcare Innovation, and a Global MBA.

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