RIYADH – Saudi Electronic University (SEU), the first government e-university in Saudi Arabia, has implemented Banner by Ellucian to help provide world-class distance education that is aligned with the needs of the labor market and responsive to lifelong learning requirements. “The Saudi government is increasingly focused on the importance of high quality education to help create the next generation of leaders and to support the future success of the workforce," said Dr. Abdullah Al-Moussa, Rector, SEU and Deputy Minister of Higher Education. SEU recently executed its online admissions and registration processes for the first group of university students through Banner by Ellucian. More than 20,000 applications were processed, and 6,500 students registered. SEU plans to leverage the scalability and flexibility of Banner by Ellucian to help reach its goal of enrolling more than 100,000 students in the next 10 years. The University has committed 65 percent of its capacity for women. Dr. Leith Suleiman, Information Technology Adviser to SEU, said “our ambition is to become a globally-recognized first-rate online institution. We are pleased to partner with Ellucian because of the company's understanding of our needs and its track record in helping universities, vocational, and non-traditional learning institutions worldwide accomplish their missions by leveraging best practices and developing and encouraging community-wide collaboration." SEU joins a growing community of institutions in Saudi Arabia that deploy technology solutions from Ellucian to help improve services to students, meet data requirements for accountability standards, and make administrative processes more efficient; an indication of the Kingdom's focus on education. More than half of all post-secondary students in the Kingdom rely on Banner by Ellucian for personalized and timely services that can help them be successful from the very beginning of their university experience. “Saudi Electronic University has undertaken an essential pursuit to create a modern learning environment based on information and communication technologies, electronic learning, and remote education," said Mathew Boice, Vice President, Middle East, Ellucian. “Ellucian is delighted to be part of this important initiative. It is part of our commitment to help the region transform higher and vocational education in order to help produce a skilled workforce that will advance the economy." — SG
