The Saudi Commission for Health Specialties (SCHS) said health institutes must re-coach students who graduate from the institutes but fail the comprehensive examination the commission supervises and conducts. New regulations stipulate that students can take the exam up to six times, with as many as three attempts in the six months after they graduate, but the institutes should provide extra assistance to students who find it difficult, a source at the Commission told Okaz/Saudi Gazette. “If a student fails three times, the health institute should re-coach the student free of charge,” the source said. “Re-tutoring will include the theoretical and practical aspects that teachers recommend. The Human Resources Development Fund should pay the student SR1,000 as an allowance during the re-training period and the student should take the exam for the fourth and the last time within six months.” If a student fails in the fourth attempt, he should take remedial classes for one year at the institute, the source said. “In this case, the institute should charge the student up to 50 percent of the annual tuition fee for the remedial classes,” the source added. In such cases, students should be able to take the comprehensive examination two more times and if they still do not pass, their names should be removed from the institutes' enrollment lists and the SCHS should be notified, the source said. Regarding students who have already attempted the examination five times, the source said the new regulations do not apply to them. Earlier, students failing four times were evaluated by a hospital run by the Directorate of Health Affairs. __
