What Are the Controls Applied to the Equivalency of Non-University Diplomas Held by Students from Countries Other Than Saudi Arabia?

The Ministry of Education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has set several controls and procedures for the equivalency of non-university diplomas held by students from countries other than the Kingdom or those who studied under educational systems other than the one adopted in the Kingdom.

Pursuant to these controls, diplomas and other relevant academic documents should meet the requirements set for equivalency. For instance, the high school diploma should be accepted by universities and higher education institutions in the issuing country. The school should be accredited by the body responsible for education in that country. The study program should be regular and offered under a clear sequence. The documents establishing that the student has passed the previous classes should be enclosed and submitted with the file.

Original copies of the relevant documents should be submitted. These documents should be authenticated and notarized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or an equivalent body in the issuing country, the Ministry of Education in the issuing country or the body overseeing public education, the Saudi Embassy or its representative, and the cultural attaché, if any. The diplomas submitted for equivalency should not feature any information deletion or modification. The name of the diploma holder should match the one listed under documents related to previous studies, his national identity card, family record, residence permit, or passport. A certified translation of foreign documents and diplomas issued in languages other than Arabic or English should be enclosed and submitted with the file.

The Ministry of Education has also devised procedures for the equivalency of diplomas. High school diplomas undergo the equivalency process upon visiting the education departments in provinces and governorates. In this respect, the relevant documents are submitted to the education departments that transfer them to the ministry via "Aamali" platform. Should the documents meet the requirements for equivalence, they would be subject to the relevant process, and the resulting document would be transferred back to the education department, via the same platform, to be delivered to the beneficiary.

The equivalence of academic documents for transition classes other than the third secondary class is processed by the education department. In this respect, the student is directly placed in the relevant grade pursuant to the equivalency decision.