Fatima Muhammad Saudi Gazette JEDDAH – The King Abduallah Scholarship Program is an enterprising initiative that helps new generation prepare for the job market and at the same time inculcates human values in the youth, Ali Al-Tawati, an economist, said, welcoming the King's approval to extend the scholarship program for another five years. Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah approved the extension of the scholarship program named after him for another five years, the Saudi Press Agency reported Monday. Minister of Higher Education Dr. Khalid Al-Anqari said the approval shows the Saudi leadership's support for higher education. The Saudi government invests a hefty SR9 billion in the program each year, and this provides full funding for 125,000 students – for both undergraduate and graduate programs abroad. According to Al-Tawati, the Saudi job market now is ready to welcome qualified citizens. “I do not think that scholarship students will face any difficulty in finding jobs when they come back,” he told Saudi Gazette. Asked if scholarship students who go for Masters and PhD degrees can face challenges when they come back overqualified, Al-Tawati said: “Higher education graduates can work in universities. The government has increased the number of universities from less than 10 to 27. Then there are private universities.” He, however, said that the Saudi job market was in pressing need for vocational training graduates. “Unfortunately, vocational training in the Kingdom is lagging behind; it has been intentionally neglected by some who think that it is not useful for the country,” Al-Tawati said. Alia Shaihoun, an undergraduate student, said that her family refused to let her go abroad on scholarship because she was not married. “But now I am engaged, so my fiancé and I are planning to go abroad after marriage. “The only thing that is bothering me is the prospect of not finding a job in my field of speciality. If that happens I will not come back,” she said. Shaihoun suggests that scholarship should be provided only when a job opportunity is available. “I would prefer to go on a scholarship only when I am employed so as to upgrade my skills for job security. This is better than taking a risk and majoring in a speciality that the country might not have jobs for.” Arwa Saati, another student, raises another important issue related to women going abroad for higher studies. “Some times it gets difficult to find a good match for marriage. Some men prefer to have their wives less qualified compared to them and more conservative.” Mashail Bakolka, another student, said that more job vacancies should be created before students are sent abroad on scholarships.
