Saudi universities will increase students intake by 15 to 20 percent this academic year especially for specializations required by the labor market, according to Dr Muhammad Al-Saleh, secretary-general of the Higher Education Council (HEC). "The council is also reviewing the subjects being taught at women's colleges and thinking of adding new specializations that are actually required," Al-Eqtisadiah daily quoted Saleh as saying. There are 72 women's colleges with an estimated 195,000 students on their rolls, he said. Saleh said the HEC is in the process of reconstructing university courses. "There are plans to reduce seats for certain courses, such as social sciences and humanities," he said, adding that some universities have already stopped admission to such courses. More seats will be allocated to medicine, pharmacology, engineering and languages, he pointed out. "The HEC has decided to establish more collages and departments for science subjects," he added.
