Al-Musharaka Blog

King Abdulaziz University (KAU) in Saudi Arabia is re-introducing a preparoty year of study for its students, a system that existed in the college approximately 40 years ago, but which was dropped shortly therafter. The goal is to decrease the number of students who swich their major after a year or two. An article on Arab News on July 6 reports:

Dr. Osama Taib, KAU’s dean, told a press conference that many students, who take up courses under pressure from family or friends, end up changing their majors after wasting an entire year or two.

Haitham Zakai, general supervisor of public relations and media at KAU, said, “The preparatory year will release the pressure that students usually feel when they start college... Students will take simple basic courses in various subjects to help them decide where their interests and skills are.”

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The preparatory year, which is to start from the next academic year, will have two streams — science and arts. Students will be able to enroll according to their specialization while at high school; each stream will lead to majors in corresponding subjects with students in the science stream free to opt for majors related to arts at university.