JEDDAH — Batterjee Medical College for Science and Technology has announced a SR500 million plan to become a university and accommodate more students. Sobhi Batterjee, chairman of the board of trustees, announced at a ceremony for the college's fourth batch of new graduates that there were also plans to open three branches throughout the Kingdom and offer new courses in respiratory therapy and occupational therapy. He said: “This success would not have been achieved without the unlimited support of our government under the leadership of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman”. The graduation ceremony at the college's Sheikh Abdul Jalil Batterjee Auditorium began with the national anthem and a recitation of verses from the Holy Qur'an as well as a visual presentation about the institution and its programs. Batterjee told the graduates: “You are the ambassadors of BMC in the local and global community; you are going to represent your college in the labor market. “We are confident that you are going to lead wonderful lives filled with achievements and successes.” Dr. Hassan Shaibah, dean, said this year's graduation was “special” because the first batch of dentistry graduates had passed through the college. There were 352 graduates for the academic year 2014/2015, including 102 in medicine, 65 in dentistry, 56 in pharmacy, 48 in physical therapy, 14 in radiology, 48 in nursing and 19 in healthcare administration. He said: “Graduates of this year and the years before are the fruits of our continuous efforts and hard work to build energetic youth armed with a high-quality education in order to contribute to the well being of their beloved country.”
