Academics announced the establishment of Khabour Private University in the city of Tel Abyad, north of Raqqa, controlled by the Syrian Interim Government (SIG).

According to the university’s founding announcement on September 1, the university includes six faculties in the fields of Islamic law, political science, agricultural engineering, economics and management, informatics engineering, and veterinary medicine, alongside three technical institutes.

The registration fees range between 300 and 500 US dollars depending on the specialization, with special discounts offered for specific categories such as families of martyrs and workers in the Syrian National Army (SNA).

It was also announced that student transportation services from the neighboring city of Ras al-Ain to Tel Abyad will be provided, although no exact date for the university’s opening or the start of student admissions has been specified.

According to the statement, the university aims to revive higher education in the region after a long period of stoppage. It is the first of its kind, as there have not been any universities in Tel Abyad and Ras al-Ain since the Interim Government took control of them in 2019.

School building

The Director of Education in the city of Tel Abyad, Abdullah Alaya, told Enab Baladi that the university had contacted the office to obtain a suitable site for its opening.

He explained that the Directorate allocated the official school “Dar al-Salam” in Tel Abyad for the university, aiming to renovate and prepare it to become its main headquarters.

He added that the local council provides the necessary facilities for the university, including licensing, after the university completes the preparation of halls and buildings.

He pointed out that the local council had previously provided facilities for Free Aleppo University in rural Aleppo and will extend the same support to Khabour University to provide higher education opportunities for students in the region.

High school examinations in Ras al-Ain for the 2023-2024 academic year (Enab Baladi)

What is Khabour University?

The chairman of the board of trustees of Khabour University, Hassan Mohammed Abu Qasra, told Enab Baladi that the university project began in Tel Abyad at the end of 2023, and they submitted a license request for the university to the Interim Government early this year, which is currently under licensing.

He explained that the university administration will start preparing the university buildings and students will be received within a period not exceeding a month and a half.

He added that the academic staff are ready and specialized in various fields, with plans to expand the university and open new branches in the future in Ras al-Ain.

He noted that the university is not supported by any sponsoring party but is the result of personal efforts by a group of academics to improve the educational reality in the region.

Abu Qasra considered that the specified fees are lower compared to other universities in northern Syria, taking into account the difficult economic situation of the region’s residents, which is worse than the rural areas of Aleppo and Idlib.

The daily wages of workers in the two cities range between 80,000 and 100,000 Syrian pounds (between 5 and 7 dollars), and most of the population works in agriculture and livestock farming.

Students disconnected from university education

There is no university education in Ras al-Ain and Tel Abyad, and it is limited to Free Aleppo University online teaching, which did not attract students due to tuition fees and the difficulty of distance education, with fewer than 80 students taking the exams.

According to statistics obtained by Enab Baladi from the Union of Students of Ras al-Ain and Tel Abyad, the number of students disconnected from university education in Ras al-Ain is 170, and in Tel Abyad, 135.

Hassan al-Mudhar, from Tel Abyad, told Enab Baladi that he has been disconnected from education since obtaining his high school diploma three years ago.

He explained that the announcement of the establishment of Khabour Private University, with fees up to 500 dollars, does not match the income of individuals in the region.

He believes that private universities will not attract students, emphasizing the importance of activating a recognized university with diverse specializations, particularly in the field of medicine, and that it should have a known reputation and not be newly established.

As for Marwa al-Hussein, who has been disconnected from university education since 2019, she told Enab Baladi that establishing a university in the city of Tel Abyad is a positive and pleasant step, but its importance lies in opening a branch in Ras al-Ain due to the distance from the center of Tel Abyad.

She expressed concern about the lack of recognition of the university, especially from Turkey, in addition to the annual fees imposed by the university.

She pointed out the need for the Interim Government to play a role in supporting education, including private universities, and secure international recognition for the universities.

The cities of Ras al-Ain and Tel Abyad, in northern Syria, are managed by Turkey, and the service institutions in them are managed through the Urfa Turkish Province Center. The local council in the city oversees the implementation of service projects, which are considered modest compared to those applied in the northern part of Aleppo province.

Ras al-Ain and Tel Abyad are located along the Turkish border and are controlled by the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army, while they are surrounded by front lines with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), with their only outlet to the outside being the Turkish border.