An overview of Transnational Education (TNE) in Saudi Arabia, including opportunities and challenges for greater UK engagement

Saudi Arabia is an important strategic partner of the UK, as well as one of the top sources of international students worldwide. While a shift in priorities set out in the country’s Vision 2030 strategy means that the generous scholarship programmes that have historically taken many Saudi students overseas are being scaled back, Saudi Arabia is exploring avenues to internationalise its domestic education sector - including encouraging cooperation with overseas institutions in the form of transnational education (TNE), allowing students to study overseas degrees within the country.

This report seeks to provide an overview of TNE practices in Saudi Arabia, exploring the opportunities and challenges for greater engagement by the UK Higher Education sector. By delving into the scale of UK-Saudi TNE, its historical evolution, regulatory frameworks, and emerging trends, this study aims to illuminate the landscape of TNE in Saudi Arabia and identify avenues for fruitful collaboration between British and Saudi educational institutions.

The report is structured into two main sections:

• TNE in Saudi Arabia: This section seeks to describe the current state of TNE in Saudi Arabia in general, to trace its evolution over time and place these changes in the context of broader economic and policy changes in the country, providing readers with a framework within which to understand the UK’s current and potential contribution. It also seeks to provide clarity on the legislative and regulatory environment for TNE in Saudi Arabia. This section was built using secondary data and statistics from Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Education and General Authority for Statistics, academic papers and the Vision 2030 strategy paper. It also includes an analysis of the 2019 Law of Universities and the 2023 Law governing the creation of foreign branch campuses, as well as its Executive Regulation and associated application forms. Where relevant, gaps in information were filled through interviews with representatives of the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Investment, Saudi universities and UK universities with knowledge of setting up TNE partnerships in Saudi Arabia.
• Prospects for UK TNE in Saudi Arabia: This section seeks to analyse the state of TNE collaboration between the two countries, including analysis of the current scale and types of active TNE partnership as well as the challenges faced by UK-Saudi partnerships and opportunities for further collaboration. The state of TNE collaboration was assessed via a variety of approaches, including an analysis of HESA data, interviews with UK and Saudi university representatives and additional desk research.

The report also provides conclusions and recommendations drawn from a thematic analysis of the entire report, giving suggestions for policy-makers and institutions in both the UK and Saudi Arabia to enhance the ways in which UK Higher Education sector can engage and collaborate to deliver TNE in Saudi Arabia.