RIYADH: A group of 26 senior Saudi academics will participate in the British Council’s 2009 Post Doctoral Summer Research Program, the British Council announced recently.
The program is backed by BAE Systems and is being organized by the British Council. The academics will work alongside their UK counterparts in selected areas of specialization.
The program is unique to Saudi Arabia. It was designed to introduce staff at Saudi universities and other research institutions to UK research methods and facilities and to increase the awareness of the range and quality of British higher education.
The program was started at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals in 1989. BAE Systems has supported the scheme since 1991 with over 390 researchers traveling to the UK.
“BAE Systems is proud to support the British Council’s Post Doctoral Summer Research Programme. The company has been operating in the Kingdom since 1973 and believes that this is extremely beneficial to the educational development for the whole community in Saudi Arabia,” said Monther Tayeb, head of public relations for BAE Systems in Saudi Arabia.
“I am delighted with the continued success of this program which has supported almost 400 scholars since its inception. This program supports Saudi academics in fulfilling leading roles in their institutions and to help develop the international standards of these institutions,” Jim Scarth, country director of the British Council said, thanking the BAE Systems for its generous support.
Of the 26 academics on the 2009 program, 10 are from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, eight are from King Saud University, two are from King Abdulaziz, King Faisal and Qassim universities respectively and one researcher is from each of Umm Al-Qura and Prince Sultan Universities.
BAE Systems is the premier global defense, security and aerospace company delivering a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions and customer support services.
In Saudi Arabia, 4,600 people work for the company and over half of those are Saudi nationals.
