336
ally enjoyed an equal role and a similar share of the market in preuniversity public
education. Now, a growing number of Saudi women are studying medicine and
medical allied sciences. Saudi women need an improvement in the transition from
school education to empower them and qualify them in other fields in the work
force. In order to implement the concept of gender equity and Saudisation effi-
ciently, the role of schools and university education has to consider this challenge
(Profanter 2014 ). Despite the equity for both genders in enrolling for KASP pro-
grammes, women account for about 25% of the scholarship holders studying abroad.
This is perhaps due to “mahram” requirements, which require the agreement of a
male relative to accompany female students. It is not easy sometimes to find an
available “mahram” to accompany the student, and in some countries, there is no
legal status for the accompanying person to stay in a foreign country for the period
of study, which might last for 1 year for a master’s programme and up to 7 years for
a medical residency programme and fellowships. In some cases, women have to
accept a place at a less prestigious university, in order to live in the mahram’s uni-
versity town, if the mahram chooses to pursue his studies. Other problems are han-
dled by Saudi Cultural attaches abroad to deal with family conflicts between female
students and her mahram, as well as the separation of couples or in cases where the
student completes her intended programme before her mahram.
In a recent paper, Elamin and Omair ( 2010 ) studied male attitudes towards
females in the working environment. Jamjoom and Kelly ( 2013 ) reviewed different
aspects of women’s achievements and challenges in higher education in Saudi
Arabia, whereas Omair ( 2015 ) reviewed and discussed the literature related to the
importance of developing female leadership capacities and effectiveness in Saudi
higher education. In the same context, Abdallam ( 2015 ) reviewed and investigated
the prospects of GCC women being or becoming leaders. These authors quoted
many international articles investigating the barrier for the advancement of women
in leadership roles in higher education. They also critically analysed similar articles
in the context of Saudi higher education. It has been pointed out that these studies
deal with the advancement of major external and internal issues created by univer-
sity cultures, gender social practices and attitudes towards female leadership. These
factors have caused the underrepresentation of women in leadership roles in the
higher education system. It is worth noting that similar barriers due to social and
cultural aspects and attitudes towards the empowerment of women in higher educa-
tion systems arise in most of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states and other
states in the Middle East. It may be surprising to note that job appointments in state
leadership positions in some GCC states are based on family networks, rather than
on qualifications and experience (Metcalfe 2007 ).
For example, job appointments in GCC states might be based on individual and
family networks rather than on qualifications and competencies (Metcalfe 2007 ).
The family idea of the role of men and women is viewed differently in the Middle
East and is sometimes viewed as an extended form of sex discrimination in educa-
tion and in the labour market. In fact, the University of Kuwait, which is co-
educational, for example, had its first female president in 1993, whereas the first
female president of the female-only Princess Nora bint Abdul Rahman University in
A.M. Abouammoh