Only top 300 universities can open branches in Qatar

MoEHE Qatar

A new draft law on higher education policies, the governance and licensing of higher education institutions and their oversight and programmes is in final stages and will be issued soon after the completion of legislative process.

Acting Assistant Undersecretary for Higher Education Affairs at the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, Dr. Khalid Al Ali said the Ministry assumes the responsibility of general supervision and serves as a general umbrella for higher educational institutions while preserving the independence of universities through their boards of directors which usually include a representative of the Ministry.

He said the number of higher education institutions in the country including governmental, semi-governmental, private, and those of security and military bodies has reached 34, which are operating with 40,000 students.

From this standpoint, Law No. 31 of 2020 was issued to establish the National Commission for Qualifications and Academic Accreditation, which is a separate committee from the Ministry’s licensing body and carries out governance and review of the work of universities after a period of their opening and operation to ensure the quality of their educational programmes.

He noted that the ceiling for admission requirements for any educational institution wishing to open a branch in Qatar has been raised, to be among the best 300 universities in the world, according to the international assessment of universities, pointing to the existence of three international rankings, which are the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, the QS classification and the Shanghai Jiao Tong classification.

Any university that meets the criteria of being among the best 300 universities in the three aforementioned rankings has the right to apply to open a branch in Qatar often with a Qatari partner or investor, provided that it uses the same programmes applied in the parent university, and grants the same certificates and the same conditions when accepting students, he said.

He pointed out that one of the distinguished Malaysian research universities has requested to open a branch in Doha, and the ministry is currently reviewing the fulfilment of all the requirements for its establishment, expecting that it may open in October.

He added that there were several requests from more than one university from different countries, but only one university was able to complete the necessary procedures and requirements to start operation in the next academic year.

A supervisory body has been established to ensure the quality of education in licensed higher education institutions, namely the National Commission for Qualifications and Academic Accreditation. 

The commission has a number of experts and specialists, he said, adding this was one of the challenges that faced higher education in the past, but with the issuance of the law forming the committee, work has begun towards the quality of education and ensuring the quality of its outputs in the higher education sector.

Dr. Al Ali revealed that the ministry’s scholarship policy allocates 75 percent of scholarships to universities inside Qatar and 25 percent external scholarships, noting that about 3,000 Qatari students on scholarships are studying in various universities inside and outside Qatar, and 75 percent of them are female.

He said that the ministry is currently building a database for all higher education students inside and outside Qatar, highlighting a database of students on scholarships through the ministry that it is currently working to list all scholarships through other agencies and institutions in the country and students at their own expenses.

Tuition fees in private universities vary, but the ministry ensures that the fees do not exceed the fees of the original university, he said, noting at the same time that some universities offer scholarships to Qatari and non-Qatari students according to their grades, and others after the student passes one or two years with distinction at the university.

He also pointed out that the state offers many incentives to private universities, including addressing the authorities concerned to allocate a piece of land for them in the future after graduating the first batch of students to build a permanent headquarters for them, affirming that the ministry is working closely with these universities to solve all the problems and obstacles they face, and some universities have started the process of building their permanent headquarters.

He pointed out that the current focus is on technological disciplines such as computer science, software, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity, indicating that the last two disciplines are important for the future, especially artificial intelligence, which is expected to be required in various sectors.

He noted that the ministry is currently working in cooperation with the Civil Service and Government Development Bureau to launch academic counselling programmes for students in public schools from the ninth grade in order to know their inclinations and scientific orientation.