International students at King Saud University from 1957 to 1999

Abstract

King Saud University, established in 1957 in Riyadh, was the first university in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Arabian Peninsula. A study was conducted to discover the facts about international students at King Saud University during the second half of the twentieth century. The study used a historical approach to answer its questions. The study found that every academic year in the twentieth century had representation from international students. Since its founding, every academic year has been full of international students. Admission in the first few years of the university was limited to males, and females were only admitted in the fifth academic year. The results showed that three international students were admitted in the first year, and the first batch of university graduates in 1961 witnessed two international students. One of the notable findings was that international female students were present from the second year of accepting the first batch of female students in 1962. The study found that international students were accepted for master's degrees for the first time in 1979, with 50 international students, nine of whom were female. The number of international students at King Saud University varied throughout the second half of the twentieth century. The number of international students increased until it declined rapidly in the last decade of the twentieth century. The 1980s were the golden period for international students at King Saud University, where the number of international students peaked, in addition to their high percentage compared to local students, before it declined sharply in the 1990s. The study found that most international students at King Saud University in the twentieth century were Arab students, and the number of male international students exceeded that of females throughout the last century. The study indicated that most international students pursued theoretical disciplines, and the College of Education was one of the largest colleges that hosted international students at King Saud University in the second half of the last century.