Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — Minister of Public Education Hamad Al-Sheikh said that arrangements have been made with public and private universities in the Kingdom to provide English language programs with international standards and specifications.

Addressing a press conference, organized by the Human Capability Development Program Committee to brief on the salient features of the Strategy of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Scholarship Program here on Sunday, he said that some Saudi universities follow study programs such as medicine, engineering and other majors in the English language.

“This represents good preparation for the students and reduces the chances of failure in exams in the scholarship country,” he said when asked about the developments related to the English language requirement for scholarships.

Al-Sheikh said that the English language has been localized in the Kingdom with the aim of raising the student’s performance level, as well as to help them possess all the requirements for university admission once and for all, besides preparing them to live in the country to where they are leaving for pursuing higher studies.

The minister said that the strategy began with an analysis of nearly 90 scholarship programs globally, and then began to design what suits the aspirations of the nation.

“The strategy is one of the most important capabilities that are spelled out in the Human Capability Development Program, launched by Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman. It seeks to send 70,000 male and female citizens to the top 200 educational and training institutions around the world during the coming period until 2030,” he said.

With regard to scholarship tracks, Al-Sheikh said that the Pioneers (Al-Ruwad) track was designed to raise the efficiency of human capital by sending scholarship students to the top 30 global educational institutions.

The graduates are expected to be equipped with a variety of qualitative knowledge in their specializations, he said.

Regarding the extent of the student’s eligibility at his own expense to join the scholarship program, the minister confirmed that every person is qualified according to the requirements that are available to apply through the program.

He stressed that the students can, at their own expense, enroll in the scholarship program if they fulfill the terms and conditions.