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Sunday, 27 December 2020

Pilot of UCAS-style platform launching next semester

The Higher Education Ministry is launching a UCAS-style platform for private universities for the coming Spring semester, after gaining approval over the weekend by the Higher Education Ministry’s Supreme Council of Private Universities, according to a cabinet statement. The platform launch will be a pilot phase that includes a few private and nonprofit universities that receive a high volume of applications, an official told Enterprise.

The platform will become mandatory for all universities starting from the Fall semester of the 2021-22 academic year, the source added.

What is the platform exactly? The platform will consolidate enrollment applications to all non-state universities in one place. Private and non-profit universities will still set their own acceptance requirements, including GPA and aptitude tests, and make their own admission decisions. However, everything will be reported centrally and revised by the ministry to make sure the candidates have indeed met all the requirements.

How does the platform work? The source explained that the platform will be similar to the Tansik system used for admission to public universities. Graduating high school seniors will register on the online platform and fill out applications including their choices of private universities and majors. Students will ultimately learn their university acceptance through the new platform. It’s possible that students may also pay for applications through the platform.

But why? The platform aims to ensure equality and parity in private universities’ enrollment by ensuring that students are admitted based on their grades and academic abilities, the source said. It also aims to bring enrollment procedures at private and nonprofit universities in line with those at their public sector counterparts.

Want to know more? We delved into the new enrollment platform and concerns about universities’ autonomy in selecting their student body in our education vertical, Blackboard, earlier this year: Gov’t considers implementing UCAS-style enrollment system for private universities.

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