On November 30, Harout Marderossian will earn an engineering degree from Uninettuno University. Along with being the first Syrian refugee to become a student at the university, he played an outsized role in the opening of the school's University for Refugees eight years ago.

The University of Refugees offers free enrollment in bachelor's and master's degrees, as well as professional qualification and requalification provided by Uninettuno. Students hail from over 28 countries.

Dean expresses satisfaction

"The university could not close its doors" to refugees, dean Maria Amata Garita said.

Looking back on the eight years since the creation of the University for Refugees, the dean said it is "inconceivable that many universities look whether there are funds to include these people before opening their doors."

Garito said the most "beautiful" aspect of Uninettuno is its "respect of differences that represent richness." This, she said, "will help us build a better future together."

She said the project has been made possible "thanks to long-distance courses that involved professors from universities in different countries."

"Each one of them filmed video lessons in their own language," she explained.

"I was studying in Aleppo and found on the website of Uninettuno the video lessons of some of my old professors in Syria. I have no idea in which part of the world they are today," Marderossian, who is now living in Lebanon as a political refugee, said.

University for Refugees, Uninettuno awarded

The University of Refugees has been recognized by a number of institutions.

In 2017, UNESCO included Uninettuno among the universities active in the achievement of the 17 sustainable development goals outlined in its 2030 agenda.

In 2019, the online university was invited to the UN's New York headquarters as part of a network of colleges from around the world to share ideas and best practices to achieve the sustainable development goals.