Civil Society in the Spotlight: Rudi Osman from the Union of Exiled Students

Rudi Osman is a prominent activist and advocate in France who works to help give exiled students a voice to enable better living and academic conditions. Upon being forced to leave Syria, he moved to France where he resumed his law studies and founded the Union des Etudiants Exilés / Union of Exiled Students (UEE), a platform which provides information, advocacy, training, and individual support to young refugees seeking higher education.

EPIM supported UEE in 2022 in its attempt to guarantee the right to continuing higher education for all students affected by the war in Ukraine – Ukrainians or foreign students who were studying there. The project offers temporary protection and facilitates the academic and social integration of students affected by the war, allowing them equal access to educational opportunities in France.

1. What led to the creation of the Union of Exiled Students and how has its role evolved over the past years? 

I wanted to resume my law studies after I moved to France. I hadn’t completed the final subjects in Syria and I had no proof of my university background. I also did not speak French. A friend accompanied me and fought for me to enrol at Paris 2 – Assas, the only university that accepted me. Then the real challenge began with intensive French courses, long hours in the amphitheatres trying to understand what I was studying. I had to familiarise myself with a different way of thinking, French methodology, writing essays, and text commentary, over weekends and late evenings. I was lucky to meet helpful people, but the environment was not particularly welcoming, and there were not many refugee students at Assas, which made the bureaucracy harder to navigate.

Despite being surrounded by very kind classmates and involved in the university’s community life, I felt what other exiled students might experience: great loneliness due to the language barrier, age differences, and different approaches to studies. Thankfully, I always had a roof over my head and close friends, but I know that’s not the case for many exiled students.

I always thought that my actions should help others avoid this ordeal. We started as three or four exiled students, with similar profiles who met in a café to welcome those who wished to resume their studies and assist them with administrative procedures.

We were first 5, then 10, then 20, and the need expanded. So, we decided to set-up an association to respond to them. Thus, the Union of Exiled Students was born, first as a collective in 2015, then as an association in 2018.  We were first housed at the Maison des Réfugiés in Paris before relocating in 2023 to the heart of the new Condorcet University campus in Aubervilliers.

Today France receives about 2000 exiled students per year. In 2022, 741 of them resumed their studies thanks to UEE.

UEE Student Union Co-President Samaher Al-Hadheri, Sebastien Nadot and Rudi Osman, September 2023 (image credit: UEE)

2. What was EPIM’s support used for?

EPIM’s support is for an initiative that aims to guarantee the right to continuing higher education for all students affected by the war in Ukraine – Ukrainians or foreign students who were studying there. This project offers temporary protection and facilitates the academic and social integration of students affected by the war, allowing them equal access to educational opportunities in France.

3. How do you collaborate with universities? Why did you decide to partner directly with them? What kind of changes has it led to on the ground? What does this allyship with universities mean for your work and goals? 

We normally train administration staff or university associations on the specific needs of these populations.

We recently became members of the Migrants in Higher Education (MEnS) network, which includes 52 universities committed to admitting exiled students. Through MEnS, we have been able to set up procedures adapted to the needs of exiled students.

For example, one important development has been the creation of the ‘Passerelle’ University Degree which enables exiled students to join the university of their choice, after attending one year of intensive French courses. Once they reach an upper-intermediate level in French and obtain this initial University Degree, they have usually regained confidence and are more familiar with the French higher education system. They can then apply for the course of their choice in the same university.

Finally, thanks to the relationships and communication channels we have built with decision-makers, we are able to raise awareness about the situation of exiled students, and are starting to make a difference, little by little.

4. How does UEE work with students’ associations? 

We have a broad network of associated and institutional partners. Our actions are varied: we co-organise large advocacy campaigns with associations and unions with a focus on mutual training to raise awareness among our allies.

In parallel, we organise many socio-cultural activities, which help break the isolation of exiled students. In January 2024, we will host a webinar with the National Network of Vice-Presidents for Student Life, Campus, and University (VECU) to raise awareness about exiled students and the difficulties they face. Our aim is to make the access and integration of exiled students into higher education easier and ultimately, guarantee their academic success.

At an institutional level, our role is one of representation in decision-making spaces, and also training and raising awareness among university staff.

UEE Student Union Co-President Samaher Al-Hadheri, Sebastien Nadot and Rudi Osman, September 2023 (image credit: UEE)

5. How does your work ultimately contribute to improving every student’s experience of the French higher education system? 

We support exiles who wish to start or resume their studies. Our office is open daily and each month we receive about 200 current and future students, and we manage to enrol about 2000 annually in the course of their choice.

Enrolment is just the first step – then come the difficulties related to housing, scholarships and access to finance, French language, and methodology courses, etc.

We offer support for all this thanks to the relationships we have built with student support organisations, for example, or with many universities or language centres. UEE also organises activities to help exiled students regain confidence and break out of isolation: public speaking courses, theatre therapy, methodology courses, and hiking.

By making universities more inclusive for exiled students, we ultimately ensure equal access to higher education for all students, regardless of their socio-economic backgrounds.

6. Do you plan to scale? What is your ultimate goal for foreign students coming into Europe and their representation? 

Yes, we are currently opening a branch in Lille, and soon in Strasbourg. We also have a presence at the University of Grenoble. We want exiled students represented within all decision-making bodies, from student unions and associations to university administrations.

Our goal is to further their voice so that their particular situation is better addressed and that future generations do not encounter the same difficulties we did in integrating into these institutions and, most importantly, in continuing their studies and obtaining a degree.

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