JEDDAH: As many as 8,248 Saudi students, including 4,500 from the Western Region, will benefit from the fifth phase of the King Abdullah Scholarship Program, said Abdullah Al-Moussa, deputy higher education minister for foreign scholarship programs.
He said the selection of universities in different countries for the higher education of Saudi students was made after careful study.
He said a special meeting would be held at the Jeddah Hilton for students who have won the scholarships. He said the meeting would include introductory and intensive courses, which are essential for scholarship winners to attend before going abroad for higher studies. The courses will be conducted by experts.
Al-Moussa said the King Abdullah Scholarship Program aims at enabling Saudi students to pursue their higher education at reputable universities and institutes in the US, Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, China, South Korea, Singapore, India and Malaysia in order to obtain bachelor, masters and doctoral degrees and medical fellowships.
He said the subjects for specialization by these students were selected on the basis of Saudi job market requirements. “The whole aim of this program is to qualify Saudi youth to play a leading role in the development process.”
He said the number of students benefited by the program would increase to 50,000 in the fifth phase. “This program will have great impact on the Kingdom’s development.”
