The Ministry of Education and Higher Education in Qatar has recently issued updated lists for scholarship and self-funded students.  Both updated lists are currently available only on the Ministry's Arabic website and can be accessed from the following links:

Scholarships list: http://www.edu.gov.qa/Ar/structure/HigherEducation/HigherEducationInstitute/Offices/Documents/SFinalList2992016.pdf 
Self-funded list: http://www.edu.gov.qa/Ar/structure/HigherEducation/HigherEducationInstitute/Offices/Documents/2016List.pdf

Major changes affecting the UK sector:

The number of approved UK universities entitled for scholarships has droped from 92 to 79 universities - a drop by 14%, while for self-funded students the number has droped from 129 to 100 - a drop by 22%  resulting in 63% only of the UK recognised bodies.  From recent conversations with the Ministry, we enterpreted that the general reason to remove an institution from these lists is either due to one or more of the following reasons:
 

• significant change in the ranking league tables (applies to scholarship list only)
• massive clusters of Qataris
• inconsistency of the admission process
• offering top-up degrees or 2+1 when a student has to do 2+2 or 3+1
• offering top-up degrees designed especially for international students, which does not allow students to merge with their counterparts from the UK doing a similar full degree programme.  The ministry is very keen to have students to do advanced entry rather than a top-up degree.
• unsuitable cultural/educational environment

 
Since there is no fixed date to review the lists, affected institutions, who are keen to be on one of these lists, are advised to get to know the main reason behind the removal asap so rectify any issues.  A face-to-face meeting is highly recommended for more efficient communication, so if you are planning a visit to Qatar soon, we can support in setting up a meeting with the ministry. Please contact Rawan Khir at least 2 weeks prior to your visit to schedule a meeting accordingly.  Nominal charges would apply.

We are also planning a Market Briefing in London on 2nd February 2017 which would involve representative(s) from the Ministry of Education & Higher Education represented by the Cultural Attaché in London.  In addition to sharing market recruitment updates and opportunities, the event would act as a platform for government's representatives to share major concerns/updates with the sector to enhance students’ experience in the UK.  Further details will be available by W/C 14th November on the SIEM website.