The Kuwaiti newspaper, Al-Qabas, said the ministerial decision was part of the Ministry of Higher Education’s efforts to control the quality of education, ensure the validity and security of university certificates and to promote quality education.
The decision included “stopping the change of medical specialization in universities for students enrolled in Jordan and Egypt before the decision was issued, and it also included stopping the transfer of scholarships to Egypt and Jordan “.
Al-Qabas quoted informed sources as saying that this step came after multiple visits by specialist delegations to medical universities in Egypt and Jordan over the past few months.
The reports of these delegations, according to the newspaper, were based on in-depth studies aimed at measuring the quality of education, and the decision was made on the basis of the recommendation of the Committee responsible for setting standards and determining the higher education institutions in medical specializations and programs outside of Kuwait. , according to its meeting at the end of May.
The sources confirmed that the decision was made based on the approval of the Board of Directors of the National Office of Academic Accreditation and Educational Quality Assurance on June 4, 2023.
Historical sequence
And in a historical sequence of what the Kuwaiti Ministry of Higher Education published in this regard:
October 2018: A ministerial decision was taken to reduce the number of accredited Egyptian universities from around 30 universities to just 7 accredited universities, following recommendations from academic accreditation delegations. Since then, accreditation has become limited to “Cairo University, Alexandria University, Ain Shams University and Mansoura University.”, Assiut University, Al-Azhar University and American University in Cairo July 2019: accreditation of only 5 Jordanian universities, when there were about 20, as the list of accredited universities included University of Jordan, Universities of Science and Technology, Yarmouk and Hashemite University, in addition to Princess University of Technology Sumaya May 2021: Determination of the minimum high school average, so that it is not less than 85% for students wishing to enroll in medicine specializations in accredited Egyptian universities, after 79% in the fields of human medicine, of Dentistry and Pharmacy.June 2022: Determination of approved majors to study in Egypt Defining only about 100 accredited majors in a number of Egyptian universities.
Approval and objection
Twelve parliamentarians confirmed their objection to the decision, calling on the Minister of Education to withdraw the decision. Academics and specialists say the move represents an opportunity to develop medical education in the country, open more medical schools and qualify Kuwaiti professionals working in the field, in addition to increasing the capacity of the Faculty of Medicine of Kuwait University. A:D Those who opposed the decision, according to the Al-Qabas newspaper, are unrealistic and contradict the needs of the medical labor market in the country, especially since it did not provide real and realistic alternatives to accommodate these budding students. studying medicine and pharmacy. They also described the decision as vague.
The newspaper reported that Kuwait University has announced the availability of 150 places for admission into the College of Medicine, 30 places in the College of Dentistry and 63 places in the College of Pharmacy, with a total of 243 places for the next academic year, while Sources revealed that the university council did not agree to increase the number of admission places for the year. The next academic year will increase to 165 places, in reference to the quality of the teaching in college.
According to Al-Qabas sources, the total number of students studying medicine and dentistry only in Egyptian and Jordanian universities is around 5,000 students.
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