Of those who entered the district, 71.3% were Jews. Therefore in order to have an impact on improving the quality of human resources in the region, the higher education institutions must reach the large and growing Arab population that remains in the region while continuing to play a role in attracting and retaining the predominantly Jewish population from the centre. Today higher education continues to be seen as means to attract young people from the centre to the periphery in the hope that they will settle and remain in the area following graduation. However in reality educated young people, who are unable to find jobs in the region, are migrating to the centre (Goren, 2009).