On February 21, 2024, Tel Aviv University (TAU) announced that for the next school year, many hundreds of students who serve in the reserves of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will be eligible for admission to study for a bachelor’s degree through a new admission route that will be opened for them in all fields of study on campus (excluding medicine), without the need for a psychometric exam.

The university took this issue into consideration after recognizing the difficulties that arose for the large amount of university candidates whose preparations for the psychometric exams conflicted with their active reserve duty. In addition, pending approval from the government, the university will also make the new admission route accessible to evacuees from the conflict lines.

In accordance with the university’s decision, those eligible will be admitted to studies based on matriculation (high school) grades only. Each study program on campus will allocate a quota of about 10% of the total number of admissions in the coming year for students accepted via the new format. It should be noted that the decision, led by TAU Rector Professor Mark Shtaif, was made after a comprehensive examination of the issue.

Eligibility will be given to candidates who served 60 days or more in 2023 (starting from October 7, 2023) or those who served for more than 28 days in 2024 (starting from January 1, 2024).

TAU emphasizes that the adjustments in admissions to studies are part of the university’s deep commitment to the IDF reservists and to their success in their studies, recognizing the difficulty created by their service even during the application phase, before they begin their studies. A significant number of candidates take the psychometric exams in December and April, but because the war started in October and still continues over four months later, those reservists have encountered difficulties in both preparing for, and taking, these exams.

In the current academic year, TAU promised to do as much as possible so that all reservists, men and women alike, complete their studies successfully. Prior to the start of the school year, the university approved a special plan for reservists that included a series of concessions and adjustments, including a reduction in the number of hours required to complete the degree, the right to receive binary pass/fail grading in some of the courses, and more flexibility in choosing exam dates.

In light of feedback from the campus, and as part of the ongoing dialogue with reservist students and the cooperation with the Student Union, the university recently approved additional adjustments, including specific adjustments for students who have served in the reserves for 28 days or more since the beginning of the semester. In addition, discussions are currently taking place at the university regarding the possible continuation of these concessions into second semester of the current school year as well.