329knowledge economies. In fact, the Ninth Five-Year Development Plan (2010–2014)
states that 50.6 percent of the budget goes to human resource development, includ-
ing education and training.
The financing of higher education is heavily dependent on the government. It
seems that without the huge support and funding to students through loans and
scholarships, most private universities and colleges would not be able to pursue
their mission properly. Public universities are completely funded by annual govern-
ment budgets. In the past few years, some old public universities, such as King Saud
University, King Abdulaziz University, King Fahd University of Petroleum and
Minerals and Umm Al-Qura University, have initiated endowment funds and intro-
duced research chairs, which are mainly funded by private donors and endowers.
Furthermore, the Saudi Council of Ministers has approved initiation of techno-
valleys associated to these universities in partnership with Saudi and foreign private
sector. Institutes for studies and consultation have also been established in some
Saudi universities to provide paid services to the public and private sectors, in order
to make additional funds available for items that are not listed on the government
university budget.
There are usually, in average, more, in number, academic units, such as colleges,
departments, supporting deanships, in Saudi universities than many other similar in
size European or US universities. For instance, in 2014, there were 23 academic
colleges at King Saud University and 25 at King Abdulaziz University, as well as 12
and 9 supporting deanships, respectively. It is worth noting that departments and
colleges at Saudi universities might have weekly to bimonthly meetings, but with
little or no terminal decisions taken on their academic and administration affairs
(HECUL 1994 ).
The council of any public university is somewhat large, since all vice-rectors,
academic deans and supporting unit deans are members of the council. For instance,
each council at King Saud University and King Abdulaziz University has more than
40 academic administrators.
In the past few years, the Ministry of Higher Education (currently the Ministry
of Education since January 2015) and Saudi universities have engaged in the issue
of quality from two important angles. The first one deals with raising the internal
efficiency of universities, by ensuring the quality of university education. This was
accomplished with the establishment of the National Center for Assessment in
Higher Education (NCAHE) in 2001. The second angle looked to improve the
external efficiency of universities and colleges by regulating the internal processes
and their outputs. This was achieved by standardising and authenticating the quality
of academic and institutional accreditations given to universities. The National
Commission for Assessment and Academic Accreditation (NCAAA), established in
2004, sets this goal.
From 1975 to January 2015, Saudi higher education was centrally managed by
the Council of Higher Education, which is chaired by the king. Its members include
ministers of Higher Education, Education, the National Economy and Planning,
Labour and the Civil Service and all public university presidents. At present, this
council has been abolished, and its authority has been given to the Council of
19 The Regeneration Aspects for Higher Education Research in the Kingdom of Saudi...