WASHINGTON — The Saudi cultural attaché in Washington has launched an advanced digital gateway, under the supervision of the Education Ministry, to facilitate Saudi students' admission to reputed American universities. The gateway will assist academically talented students to get seats in distinguished universities, said Dr. Mohammed Al-Eissa, the cultural attaché. The new system constitutes a quantum leap in academic and cultural cooperation between the two countries, he said. "It will facilitate bilateral scientific and cultural exchanges, joint programs, training and exchange of students and faculty members," he added. The digital portal was launched on the sidelines of the 39th meeting of the heads of Saudi students' clubs in American universities. "By launching this portal we have implemented the directives of the Saudi leadership and the Ministry of Education to help Saudi students get seats in distinguished universities and distribute our scholarship students to a large number of universities that offer best quality education," he said. The portal has been named "The Gateway of Ambassador for Academic Engagement System." It was developed by a team of experts from the academic accreditation department at the attaché. Al-Eissa urged all Saudi students intending to pursue their higher studies in the US to go through the conditions and instructions published on the portal carefully and upload correct information for the benefit of both sides. Dr. Mohammed Al-Obaishi, director of academic accreditation and documentation, said the portal was developed after studying all aspects of Saudi students and after conducting discussions with a large number of students to collect and analyze data in order to develop a series of solutions and present novel and viable ideas. He said the portal would help students understand the requirements of US universities in light of their academic qualifications. "Students will be able to select universities that match with their qualifications and interests." He said the attaché had signed about 100 agreements with US universities including 40 distinguished institutions of higher learning. "Efforts are underway to sign such accords with more universities," he added. Al-Obaishi said the attaché developed the new digital gateway to meet the needs of Saudi and US universities to accelerate cultural, scientific and educational cooperation and meet future requirements. The system will contribute to accreditation of scientific degrees and programs offered by US universities, said Al-Obaishi. "It will ensure preservation of the criteria set by the Education Ministry for bachelor, master, doctoral and fellowship degrees," he explained. American universities will have their links on the portal while Saudi universities will have access to cultural and scientific exchange programs and new research programs. The attaché will publish a list of best students on the basis of their academic performance. Al-Obaishi urged students to contact sacm.org@sap if they confront any problems after logging onto the new portal. The Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission (SACM) implements Saudi national educational and training policies to provide the Kingdom with qualified individuals capable of achieving the country's goals of progress and development. "We strive to provide our students with the best possible opportunities at the best educational institutions in the US. We support our students academically and financially so that they may concentrate on achieving their academic goals," said the attaché.
