Jordan: Court announces scholarship eligibility criteria

The Royal Court has announced the new criteria on the basis of which it will grant scholarships to students admitted to public universities. Under Royal directives amending the foundations of the Royal makruma, the Royal Court will no longer allocate university seats for Tawjihi graduates under certain quotas, but will provide 1,420 scholarships to students accepted in public universities within the unified admission list as of the 2012/13 scholastic year. Applicants for the scholarships must be Jordanians and in their first year at university, with Tawjihi scores of no less than 65 per cent, according to a Royal Court announcement published in the local press. Students applying for the scholarships must not be sponsored by any other party and must have clean academic records, with no penalties registered during the first semester of their first academic year, the Royal Court said. Students admitted to any public university under the parallel study programme or bridging system are not eligible for the scholarships, according to the announcement. The bridging system allows top achievers in the Comprehensive Exam (Shamel), a state-run test for intermediate college students, to continue their first university degree at local universities. Students’ eligibility for the scholarships will be calculated on a weighted 1,000-point scale, with 300 points based on the income of the family, taking into account monthly household income, whether the family resides in a poverty pocket, and whether they receive assistance from the National Aid Fund. Students’ academic achievements, whether they have brothers or sisters studying at universities or colleges, and their place of residence will account for 400, 200 and 100 points respectively, the Royal Court said. From jordantimes