The King Abdullah Scholarship Programme is one of the largest national scholarship schemes in history: Saudi Arabia has invested US$5 billion sending hundreds of thousands of students to study a language and targeted degree programmes overseas. The programme is not without its trials, but its benefits – both social and cultural, as well as to the bottom line of institutions – are evident. Dan Thomas reports.

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Education hopes to classify English language centres based on the quality of services they provide, in a bid to raise standards. According to the Saudi Gazette schools will not face closure but be awarded stars based on the quality of service they provide.

Foreign enrolments at US universities grew 6% to 764,495 this year, according to the latest Open Doors report, bringing an estimated $21.81 billion to the economy. It was driven by a big rise in interest from China and Saudi Arabia, as well as in English programmes as a route to university. The number of Americans studying abroad was also up.

The iTEP (International Test of English Proficiency), a relatively new player in the EFL test market, is to deliver 15,000 exams this year with the Saudi Arabian government in a sign of its growing presence in the region.