WASHINGTON: The inclusion of private Saudi students in the country’s scholarship program in the United States would be overseen by the Education Ministry and is dependent on certain conditions.
This is according to the office of the Saudi cultural affairs attaché in Washington, which said that students can apply online and would not need to travel to America, a local publication reported recently.
At a meeting of the Saudi student clubs in America on Sunday, Mohammad Al-Omar, assistant attaché for study affairs, said the royal order issued recently makes the ministry responsible for the expenses of over 10,000 students.
Al-Omar said he hoped the order would include advanced students. The ministry would now have to work out what years the government would cover, he said.
Scholarships would only be given to students with music and sports subjects if these are linked to their specializations. In addition, the government would only allow students to study one subject through the Internet.
The ministry would not cover tuition fees for the foreign wives of Saudi students and only provide a fixed stipend and health insurance costs. A woman Saudi student would be allowed to have her maternal uncle accompany her abroad, said Al-Omar.
He said there are 334 student clubs at universities in 47 states, representing 122,000 students and their families.
Some private students have said that the conditions are tough to qualify for support under the scholarship program. Crown Prince Mohammad bin Naif and his deputy Prince Mohammad bin Salman have agreed to include private students under the program.
Scholarships for private students conditional
Scholarships for private students conditional
