Dell Foundation grants NIS 170 million in scholarships to periphery's young tech leaders
The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation and The Council for Higher Education will provide tuition funding and a stipend to 1,500 young people from groups underrepresented in academia, and will accompany them from the preparatory stage to professional integration in high-tech.
The Council for Higher Education (CHE) and the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation announced the opening of a new scholarship program for young people from underrepresented populations in higher education, totaling NIS 170 million. The foundation will invest NIS 85 million, and the Planning and Budgeting Committee of the Higher Council will invest NIS 85 million. The scholarships will cover the full tuition fees for the preparatory program and degree, and a stipend.
The Tech Leaders program will award scholarships to 300 students in each cohort and up to 1,500 students over the next five years, and they will receive full funding for the preparatory program and degree, a stipend, a computer, academic and personal guidance, career development, and connection to industry. The track will include pre-academic preparatory programs and sometimes pre-preparatory programs and degrees in STEM fields, with the aim of integrating graduates into Israeli high-tech. The foundation will accompany the students throughout the track.
The program will target populations that are underrepresented in academia and high-tech: graduates of ultra-Orthodox education, Arab society, the Ethiopian community, and young people from the social periphery. The idea is not to appeal only to those who have already completed their studies, but to identify young people with potential in a multi-stage process and help them complete the entire course, including the completions required to be admitted to studies.
The preparatory and pre-preparatory courses can be taken at the Technion, the Hebrew University, Ben Gurion University, and Bar Ilan University. The degrees can be taken at the Universities of Haifa and Ariel, and at Azrieli College in Jerusalem and the Sami Shamoon College in Ashdod. However, the process of selecting institutions is ongoing.
The Dell Foundation scholarship program was launched in 2004 and operates in the United States, India, South Africa, and Kenya. To date, it has awarded scholarships to 25,000 students to complete their degrees and complete their degrees. To date, the foundation has invested more than $10 billion in promoting education, health, and social mobility, while ensuring measurable impact.
The director of the Susan and Michael Dell Foundation in Israel, Tali Barash-Bouskila, said that "Talent is everywhere, but the path to integration into the fields of engineering and science is not always paved. That is why the program identifies candidates early on." The Chair of the Planning and Budgeting Committee of the CHE, Prof. Ami Moyal, said, "We have the responsibility to ensure that every young person has an opportunity to realize their potential." The CEO of the Foundation, Dr. Maya Lugasi Ben Hamo, said that "different populations suffer from barriers on the path to higher education, and tailored solutions such as the package that the foundation will offer must be developed for them."
First published: 10:54, 27.08.26
