Roma student support and talent development programme

The project's overall aim was to bridge higher education institutions with Roma communities in order to improve their access to higher education via peer mentoring and tutoring, and to encourage experience- and knowledge-sharing between institutions from Slovakia and Hungary. The disadvantaged access to education resulting in low levels of obtained education and skills decreases the number of job opportunities and increases the risk of poverty and social exclusion. The alarming figures in Slovakia show that 58% of Roma aged 16-24 are neither employed nor enrolled in education or training (NEET), as opposed to 19% from the majority population. Hungarian statistics also indicate the disadvantaged situation of Roma youth in the labour market: whereas the NEET rate of non-Roma population aged 15-24 is less than 10%, for young Roma people the share is more than 40%. While there is no official data is missing, there is a striking difference between Roma and non-Roma in their participation in higher education.

1) testing of a pilot programme combining peer mentoring and tutoring of Roma high school pupils by current university students to support their successful completion of high school and transition to university studies and/or future career 2) exchange of know-how, experience and policies in the field of inclusive education between institutions of Slovakia and Hungary, specifically on bridging universities with Roma communities 3) formulation of field-tested recommendations for public policy in the area of inclusive education

There were three main sets of activities in the course of the project: 1) Peer mentoring and tutoring delivered by 10 university students in Slovakia and Hungary for a selected group of 23+ Roma pupils in their penultimate and final year of high school to support them in their studies, personal development and transition to the tertiary education. This was supplemented by additional tutoring, language support, scholarship (in the case of Hungary) and internship programme (in Slovakia, in collaboration with Roma Education Fund). 2) International tour in Budapest and Bratislava in the middle of the programme to broaden the international horizon of the participants, offer an opportunity for an in person meeting and exchange of experiences, as well as presentation of university studies and job opportunities. 3) Two annual expert policy roundtables (one online and one in-person) whose purpose was to bring together policymakers and experts from Slovakia and Hungary in the field of inclusive education, to present up-to-date field experience, including one based the project, as well as opportunities in the EU Programming period 2021-2027, and to formulate concrete recommendations based on these discussions.

There are number of concrete outputs delivered as a result of the project: 1) 23 pupils in Slovakia and Hungary successfully completed their high school and was accepted for university studies in the two countries or abroad. 2) 2 international visits of Bratislava and Budapest were hosted in summer 2023 3) 2 online and in-person expert roundtable meetings were hosted in April 2023 and May 2024 4) 1 practical manual formulating guidelines and recommendations based on the project experience was completed