Palestinian Students in an Israeli-Hebrew University: Obstacles and Challenges

This study examines the status and integration of Palestinians from East Jerusalem studying at the Hebrew University. The research question focuses on how these students feel within the university walls and how they perceive attitudes towards them by lecturers, administrative staff, and fellow students. The study is based on qualitative research methodology conducted through in-depth interviews. The findings reflect a dire reality in which Palestinian students experience feelings of isolation and even alienation. They experience their period of study as being difficult and unpleasant, one that they must simply endure if they wish to obtain their desired degree. The students' initial experience is one of a culture shock, entering into an unfamiliar space, and struggling with a foreign language. In addition to this initial shock, the dominant experience that they describe is one of exclusion and being ignored. This experience is particularly difficult during their first year of studies, with the language barrier being the most difficult obstacle. On the other hand, the participants also describe the campus as being a place of shelter, as opposed to the hostile and threatening outside world. While this may sound paradoxical, it reflects their complex reality. The students report that once they enter the campus, they feel protected, unlike other spaces in the public sphere where they are subject to harassment by the police and Jewish extremists.