By now, 342 students are enrolled at the Dual Studies Program at Al-Quds University (AQU). Its launch has been supported by the joint GIZ and KfW-project “More Job Opportunities for Palestinian Youth” (MJO), as part of the BMZ Special Initiative MENA, since 2015. Currently, students can choose between four dual study courses; Business Administration, IT, Electrical Engineering, and Industrial Engineering.
The Dual Studies Program is based on the model of Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg (DHBW). It closely coordinates academic theory and workplace-training. Students switch between both trainings every three months during their four-year studies. A core objective of the program is to generate labor market-ready graduates meeting the needs of the Palestinian private sector. To do so, fostering partnerships with the private sector becomes an important pillar of success for the Dual Studies program. This shall contribute to reducing the high number of unemployment amongst university graduates.
GIZ is very proud to announce the formation of more than 200 partnerships of AQU with various Palestinian companies and institutions of the Palestinian private sector. To highlight the importance of this milestone, these partnerships were honored in a ceremony on 23rd of September 2019 in Ramallah. The event was organized by AQU, the German Representative Office Ramallah, and GIZ. Representatives of the Palestinian private sector and KfW were invited.
Ms. Nadia Khattab, Human Resource and Recruitment manager at ASAL Technologies, Information Technology Palestinian partner company of Dual Studies, expressed her admiration of the program and the results that have been achieved so far. Ms. Khattab announced that the company has recently hired one of the Dual Studies students even before he finishes his study. Ms. Khattab said:
Abdallah Reziq, IT dual study student, is now an official employee at ASAL Technologies. We are so proud of him, he showed a high level of improvement, dedication, and commitment during the last years. Based on our evaluation, his level matches a one-year experienced engineer. This is something we feel proud of! It was an exceptional experience for the company thanks to the dual model.
Prof. Imad Abu Kishek, President of AQU, highlighted that AQU is the first Palestinian university which adapts such model of higher education. “The program of Dual Studies is one of the most distinguished programs which are offered by AQU, thanks to the support from our German partners. It presents an advanced educational system that combines theoretical study with a practical application”, Abu Kishek added that “Together we aim at educating a young Palestinian generation to be one hundred percent ready for the labor market”. Prof. Abu Keshk pointed out that the first cohort of the Dual Studies is expected to graduate with a high probability of being immediately employed after graduation.
While addressing the audience, H.E. Mr. Christian Clages, Head of the German Representative Office, expressed great delight with the Dual Studies’ partnerships and achievements during the last four years. He said:
I’d like to seize the opportunity here to congratulate AQU and all partner companies for this unique partnership. Germany is very proud to support AQU in setting-up the first-of-its-kind dual studies program.
Ms. Kirsten Freimann, Head of the GIZ MJO-project, emphasized the continuous support of the German government for the program at AQU in order to provide better opportunities for Palestinian youth and to award them with more opportunities in the labor market saying "We see the model of Dual Studies at AQU as a pioneering and successful experience that requires attention and upscaling” , she added, “German Cooperation’s approach, on the long to medium term perspective, is to establish a system that is self-sustaining and run by the AQU independently. It should serve as an example for other universities in Palestine and in the region”. Ms. Freimann indicated that the German Jordanian University in Jordan was inspired by the Dual Studies in Palestine and will benefit from its experience “This proves again the success of such model and provides an excellent example.
