Overseas academic qualifications must meet accreditation standards

Manama, Aug. 23 (BNA): Education Ministry Undersecretary for Education and Curricula Affairs and Head of the National Committee for the Evaluation of Academic Qualifications Dr. Fawzi Abdulrahman Al Jowder stressed the great care accorded by the Kingdom of Bahrain to education, in general, and higher education, in particular. He pointed out setting up the Higher Education Council and its related academic and administrative committees to oversee higher education institutions as per law number 3 for 2005. He also pointed out administrative, academic and financial by-laws as well as licences organising the higher education and its public and private institutions. Concerning recent circulating news of the committee not recognising academic qualifications from the friendly Republic of China, Al Jowder dismissed the news as baseless affirming that the national committee, out of its commitment to international cooperation agreements and memoranda, recognises all academic qualifications from all over the world providing they meet the equivalence standards and requirements. He added that after having the issue investigated by the specialised technical committee, it has been found out that there is a discordance with the validation criteria. Therefore, the committee recommended that the certificates issued by the university in focus should not be equated due to the serious incompatibility, especially in a discipline like medicine. Al Jowder added that the committee does not recognise any programme by overseas universities designated for overseas students and granting them privileges, unlike what is applied for native students. He stressed that the committee will not equate any academic qualification granted in this way, pointing out that the national committee’s stance emanates from its adherence to the decree-law of its establishment and the organisational resolutions regulating its work as well as the ministerial decisions and the decisions of the GCC joint committees.