Number of international students in Kingdom’s universities increased by 13% in 2019 — ministry

AMMAN — The percentage of international students studying in the Kingdom for the current academic year has increased by 13.5 per cent compared with the previous academic year, according to the Ministry of Higher Education.

The number of non-Jordanian students studying in the Kingdom reached 44,734 for the academic year 2018/2019, representing 105 countries around the world, according to the latest statistics by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.

The number of international students studying at public universities was 18,608, while 26,126 students were studying at private universities, according to the ministry.

The ministry’s spokesperson, Muhannad Khatib, said on Saturday that the 13.5-per cent increase is a “result of the efforts made by the ministry through the Directorate of International Student Affairs, which was recently created with the aim of increasing the number of international students”.

He added that the ministry has invested in its website and other electronic platforms for this purpose, one of which is the “Study in Jordan” portal for students, which provides comprehensive information in 14 languages to familiarise students around the world with the Kingdom’s higher education system. 

The ministry also launched a social media campaign, creating ads in various languages and attracting 801,025 follower interactions in the process. 

According to Khatib, the ministry also launched a unified platform for electronic education services through which students can submit a request for free to apply to a university in Jordan and obtain initial approval from the ministry within three days of submission. 

“The ministry seeks, within the framework of cooperation with ministries and relevant authorities in Arab and foreign countries, to extend cultural agreements to exchange students and faculty members alike by developing academic plans and programmes that cater to the needs of international students and academics in Jordan,” the ministry stated.

Khatib added that the ministry is “constantly encouraging Jordanian universities to implement procedures that increase the number of international students studying in them by establishing offices specifically designed to cater to their needs”.

The ministry stressed that attracting foreign students to study in Jordan contributes to supporting university budgets and the national economy, strengthening cultural relations between the Kingdom and the countries of the students, who are seen as “ambassadors of their own nations”.