The official spokesman for the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Muhannad Al-Khatib, confirmed that 550 partial scholarships and loans will be allocated to each of the Kingdom’s brigades, distributed among 250 loans and 150 scholarships for bachelor’s level students, and 150 partial scholarships for intermediate diploma level students in professional and applied specializations.
Al-Khatib said, on Wednesday, to the “Voice of the Kingdom” program, that the total of these scholarships and loans will constitute 50% of the total number of scholarships and loans provided by the University Student Support Fund annually, with the remaining 50% being distributed among the various 56 brigades in which not all students applying were included, according to population density and the number of applicants who met the conditions and were not nominated for scholarships or loans.
He explained that this mechanism is more fair to districts with a large population density, as the number of students nominated for scholarships and loans there will increase, and the points required to nominate a student to benefit from a scholarship or loan will decrease, while the mechanism will maintain the share of districts with a small population density that will not be negatively affected by the implementation of the new system.
Al-Khatib pointed out that the opportunities for students in districts with a high student density will witness a significant increase as a result of an increase in their share of scholarships and loans, stressing that the implementation of the new system will begin as of the academic year 2026-2027.
He stressed that the new amendments will not affect the legal positions of students who previously applied to benefit from the fund, indicating that the aim of the amendments is to institutionalize the distribution of grants and loans according to the annual changes in the number of students.
Al-Khatib pointed out that these amendments come in response to the need to develop the student social protection system and direct support towards technical and professional specializations in a way that is consistent with the requirements of the labor market and the vision of economic modernization.
It was the Cabinet He agreed On April 26, 2026, on the reasons for drafting a system amending the Student Support Fund system in public universities for the year 2026 AD; With the aim of developing a new and clear mechanism for distributing partial scholarships and loans to all districts of the Kingdom, in a way that ensures the achievement of justice and equal opportunities among the beneficiary students, taking into account the population density of each district.
