Two Palestinian scholars have arrived in Belfast to further their education against the backdrop of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
The fully paid, one-year Copty postgraduate programme at Queen’s University is open to applicants with Palestinian nationality who live in Gaza or the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and belong to a family normally resident there.
It was set up in 2020 by alumni Georgina Copty and her husband Chris McDowell in a bid to help transform lives through education.
QUB had announced it would be extending the scholarship from one to four students as part of a package of measures of support for at risk students and academics.
Gaza-based scholar Yousef Albaba, who will be studying a Masters in Public Health at Queen’s, said: “After doing an undergraduate in medicine I continued my studies in Cairo.
“I always dreamed of pursuing a Masters degree in another country and when I learnt about the Copty scholarship, I knew I wanted to come here.”
Dentist Daniella Dumak from Bethlehem, Palestine, will be studying a Masters in Public Health.
“Belfast is a lovely city with very friendly people...it feels like another home for me,” she said.
“I’ve heard a lot of good things from other students including the teaching system here and I’m looking forward to studying here.”
Gina Copty, who founded the scholarship, added that they hope to extend the programme to multiple students this year.
“When there is conflict, one of the first things that suffers is the education system,” she said.
