Four Middle Eastern universities have been included in a list of the world’s top 500 educational institutions, according to the latest annual study by the Center for World-Class Universities.
The 2010 Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU), compiled each year by the Center for World-Class Universities at the Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China, reviewed the best third level educational institutions worldwide.
While the United States dominated the list, with eight universities in the top ten and 54 in the top 100, four from the Middle East made the cut.
The King Saud University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s oldest university, and the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals were the only institutions in the Gulf to make the grade. Also on the list was Istanbul University in Turkey and University of Tehran in Iran.
Topping the list for the eighth year running was Harvard University, Berkeley and Stanford. Of the UK universities Cambridge was fifth and Oxford was tenth. One hundred and six universities from the Asia-Pacific region made the top 500.
Saudi Arabia is aiming to improve its presence on future lists and this month education officials announced they have allocated $533 million to improve facilities at the kingdom’s universities.
Khaled Al Anqari, the Minister of Higher Education, signed 22 contracts for works including the building of an educational hospital and a faculty of architecture at Hail University.
A total of $453.22 million has been allocated for expansion projects, Arab News reported, including building a community college at Taiba University, residential quarters for faculty members at the Islamic University and Tabuk University, and a landscaping project at Jazan University.
Al Anqari also signed five contracts worth $61.33 million to furnish and equip science faculties at Baha, Jazan, Hail and Kharj universities, the paper reports.
The kingdom also announced plans to appoint more than 23,000 new teachers in time for the new academic year.
Saudi Arabia is keen to raise standards in its education system and last year education chiefs launched a $5.34 billion project to construct new buildings for 3,200 schools.
The new school buildings, which are planned for both boys and girls across the kingdom, will provide accommodation more than 1.7million students.
Under King Abdullah’s efforts to promote education, a $2.39 billion project has also increased the number of universities from eight to 25 in the kingdom.
The King Abdullah Scholarship Programme has also seen nearly 60,000 Saudi students pursue their higher education at colleges and universities across the globe.
About 30 percent of the national budget is devoted to education and training as Saudi Arabia looks to improve education standards.
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