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Numerus clausus

Numerus Clausus ("closed number" in latin) means limiting the number of students in universities and colleges according to a discriminatory rule.

Before the Second World War the limitations were usually based, in eastern Europe, on the religion of the student, as the number of students of Jewish origin was limited.

The limitation took the form of total prohibition of Jewish students, or of limiting the number of Jewish students so that their share in the students' population would be not larger than their share in the general population.

Countries legislating limitations on the admission of Jewish students

Jews who wanted education used various ways to handle this obstacle: bribing the authorities, changing their religion, or traveling to countries without such limitations. In Hungary, for example, 5,000 Jewish youngsters (including Edward Teller) left the country after the introduction of Numerus Clausus.

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