Saudi Energy Minister: female students welcomed at the University of petroleum and Minerals
Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz said that allowing female students to be admitted to King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals is a step towards achieving many of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030’s goals.
King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals in Dhahran announced opening the admission of female students to the bachelor’s degree for the first time, starting from the next academic year 2021/2022.
Prince Abdulaziz stressed: “The university’s acceptance of female students comes at a time when Saudi Arabia, the leadership, and the people are celebrating the fifth anniversary of the launch [of Vision 2030]”.
It is an important step towards achieving goals, which seek to empower Saudi women and support their full participation in the comprehensive renaissance they are witnessing.
Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman added: “The enrollment of female students at the university will allow them to benefit from a long-standing national academic institution with a prestigious international academic and application level. It will also give them a distinguished ranking among universities worldwide, especially in the various fields of science and engineering.”
He indicated that female students to the university for the next academic year 2021/2022 will represent 20% of the admitted, according to the available capabilities. In the following year, the university aims to raise the percentage of female students’ admission to 40%.
The process will continue based on competence and abilities, following the admission rules for male and female students. He pointed out that the female students who will join the university will be the university’s pride, just like its previous graduates, who today number nearly 40,000.
The early specialization programs will introduce more than 34 new courses at the bachelor’s level, focusing on the requirements of new technologies, new economy, and providing specializations of strategic importance to the Kingdom, including drone technologies, electronic defence systems, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and others.
