©UNHCR/Chris Young
Online learning program empowers refugees to pursue higher education
Master’s student in Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camp plays active role in campus life at Canada’s York University
By Lauren La Rose 20 |
Abdikadir Bare Abikar has never seen York University in person, yet distance has proved to be no barrier for the graduate student who has already left a lasting imprint on the Canadian campus — a community he is proud to call his own.
Abikar is currently pursuing his Master of Education degree at York — Canada’s third-largest university — without ever having set foot on campus. Originally from Somalia, Abikar has called Dadaab home for the past 20 years, living in the remote Ifo refugee camp in Kenya. He has been pursuing higher education since 2013 through online learning.
“There’s a lot of inclusivity,” said Abikar. “We don’t feel our absence from the campus.”
“We are learning a lot of things from York University and the professors have really integrated us through their programs and really helped us.”
Abikar is among only seven refugee students enrolled in a master’s degree program in Dadaab — a camp that is home to more than 200,000 people. He is in rare company, among only three per cent of refugees globally who are able to access university.
But as his professors and peers can attest, the married father of three is determined to leave the university experience with more than just a degree. From daily two-hour walking commutes to the computer lab or video chats from home, he is actively working on projects and initiatives benefiting classmates in both Canada and Kenya.
Sitting in a lower-level classroom in Winters College — home to York’s Faculty of Education — Farra Yasin exchanges waves and smiles with Abikar as they speak on an online video chat. Since first forging their connection through their work on York Graduate Students in Education council (YGSE) and have remained friends since.
“When Abdikadir came on council, we did not really have someone to keep us connected with the community in Dadaab,” recalled
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