Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — For the first time in its history, the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM) in Dhahran has opened its doors for women students to pursue bachelor’s degree courses.

The university announced on Monday that it will start receiving applications from girls during the period between June 13 and 18 this year. Preference will be given to those who have good performance in terms of their capabilities, achievements and secondary education exam results. Students can choose the major during the admission phase, and the university will organize seminars and lectures to introduce various specializations.

The university took the decision for women’s enrollment as part of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, which seeks to empower women and qualify them in all specializations.

Earlier in 2018, minister of education announced the approval of the university senate to accept women students in post-graduate studies. The university decision allowed women students to pursue their master’s and PhD degrees in five subjects — mathematics, statistics, computer engineering and sciences, public administration and engineering management.

More than 33,000 students have so far graduated from the university, which has eight colleges and it was the first higher education institution in the Kingdom to teach science and technology.

The university started enrollment of female students for the postgraduate courses on Sept. 1, 2019. About 100 girl students have joined the university in the disciplines of mathematics, computer science, business administration and they were shortlisted from among more than 600 applicants.