On December 20, the Israeli Knesset approved in the final reading a bill on state funding of higher education for demobilized soldiers of mandatory and extended service.

According to the adopted law, the state will fully cover the cost of obtaining higher education for the first academic degree for all students who have served in the army. The benefit also extends to those who have already enrolled in higher education institutions after completing their military service. They will receive compensation retroactively. In addition, the period for applying for the subsidy has been increased from three to five years after reserve release for conscript soldiers and from five to seven years for officers and extended service soldiers.

The education funding will be provided by the “Mimadim le-Limudim” (“From Military Uniform to Study”) fund.

According to data from the international educational portal Erudera, Israel ranks fifth in the world in terms of the proportion of citizens with higher education – 50.12%.

Currently, there are ten public universities and more than 50 academic colleges in Israel.

At the time of the proclamation of Israel’s Independence in 1948, there were two institutions of higher learning in the country: the Technion in Haifa and the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.