Universities and colleges will admit more than 300,000 high-school graduates this year, Dr. Mohammad Al-Ouhali, Deputy Minister of Higher Education for Educational Affairs, said. Starting this week, the ministry will issue a weekly statistic on seats available in universities and colleges, Dr. Al-Ouhali said. He expects the number of those passing high school with grades to exceed 170,000. This will certainly increase competition for admission in universities. He added admission mechanisms were developed as documents are delivered by mail and registration is carried out online. Dr. Al-Ouhali said the ministry was ready to admit more students than previous years, with 100 percent increase in more than 40 universities and colleges. New departments and majors needed by the labor market will be established and the ministry is coordinating with universities on the new framework, he said. Meanwhile, Dr. Ali Bin Nasir Al-Ghufais, Governor of the Technical and Vocational Training Corporation (TVTC), said 50,000 students of both genders will be admitted in technical and vocational institutes and colleges. The number of students admitted last year was 40,000, including 15,000 in technical colleges. – Okaz __
