Letter to the New Immigrant

The Open University is a distance learning institution accredited by the Council of Higher Education. Learning at the Open University is conducted through study of written units in Hebrew together with tutorial sessions. Assignments and exams are also submitted in Hebrew. As the units are not written in simple Hebrew, academic success is contingent on mastery of the Hebrew language.

Please read this letter carefully before you decide to register, and follow the recommendations specified below.

Before beginning your studies:
Order the Open University catalog or contact the Information and Inquiry Center at 972-9-7782222.

Academic counseling concerning course selection is highly recommended. You will find detailed information about academic counseling here: counseling locations in Israel, names of academic advisors, counseling days and hours.

To request tuition assistance from the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption - Student Administration you must demonstrate knowledge of Hebrew by taking a Hebrew language test. Students with a Hebrew language test grade lower than 75 (or less than 106 points on the "Yael" test) are not eligible for tuition assistance from the Student Administration. For information about the test, please contact Nitsan Almog at 972-9-7781501, e-mail: nitsana@openu.ac.il.

When contacting the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption - Student Administration, please prepare the following documents:

     Letter from Dean of Students specifying your Hebrew level.
     Receipt from the Open University attesting to payment of registration fee.
     Registration form including your personal details and the courses in which you wish to enroll, after paying the Open University registration fee.

The Student Administration will only accept registration forms of the Open University. Receipts from colleges and institutions in which Open University studies are conducted will not be accepted.

After receiving a letter from the Student Administration confirming the award of tuition assistance, submit the letter together with the registration forms to the Open University Admissions Office.

The Student Administration only grants tuition assistance for studies at the Open University. The Student Administration does not fund additional fees charged by other institutions.

If you choose to study in a college or institution conducting Open University courses you must inform the institution of your registration through the Open University.

New students may not begin their studies during the Summer semester.

During the academic year (second semester and beyond):
To receive continued assistance from the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption you must enroll in at least two courses in each semester and demonstrate academic success in the previous semester.

You need to enroll during the regular registration period and pay tuition (without waiting for confirmation from the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption). If you register during the late registration period of the special registration period, you will be expected to pay the late registration fee, in accordance with University regulations.

Please note that each semester you must submit registration forms together with documents specifying academic success in the previous semester to the Student Administration.

     If you took one course - you must submit a document indicating academic success in one course.
     If you took two courses - you must submit a document indicating academic success in two courses.
     If you took three courses - you must submit a document indicating academic success in at least two courses.

You must submit confirmation of registration and examination grades to the Student Administration in order to receive confirmation of the award of tuition assistance. When you transmit the confirmation of assistance to the Admissions Office, the tuition you paid will be refunded.

To meet the above criteria, you must sit for examinations on the first exam date in the courses in which you wish to demonstrate academic success.

English Reading Comprehension, Level A, will be funded by the Student Administration in the framework of regular tuition. Up to 30% of the annual tuition for Levels B through E will be funded by the Student Administration, on condition that you passed your first four academic courses.

The Student Administration does not fund tuition for Summer semester courses or for courses in the School of Technology.

I wish you productive and enjoyable studies.

Sincerely,
Dr. Haim Saadoun
Dean of Students