The official spokesman of the Ministry of Higher Education, Mohammed Al-Haizan, says the ministry will take a strong stand against Science and Technology College for “violating regulations and allowing students to continue studying there before the completion of necessary procedures and without a college license.”
The ministry met Tuesday with the owners of the Science and Technology College to reach a solution, the main issue now being the fate of the students who are left without further education. The ministry said that no student should apply for admission to colleges or universities before making sure of their validity.
Students expressed disappointment and distress about what happened, demanding the Ministry of Higher Education reconsider shutting down the college.
When they first applied there, advertisements were placed in newspapers guaranteeing that certificates are acknowledged around the world. “We’ve received ratification certificates from important official authorities like the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Ministry of Higher Education itself. We are surprised by this announcement, specially that some of us have five subjects left to graduate,” a student said.
A number of them spoke to the head of the college, Abdulelah Hizam, who told them the issue would be resolved in a few days. The students refused the ministry’s solutions, asking for alternatives to equating certificates and providing them with scholarships.
“There’s no other school around here that provides the same majors. Even if it was provided, it would be totally different from what we’ve studied,” added the student as some of them pondered their fate after already completing three years of study.
One of the students, Khalid Al-Mahmoud, said: “According to the scholarships, the curriculum will be different than ours considering the fact that the majors we have studied are not available in other colleges.”
