Higher Education in the Sultanate of Oman: The challenge of access, equity and privatization

Abstract

During the renaissance of the last 30 years, the Sultanate of Oman has established a relatively large and diverse system of general (pre-tertiary) education. The rapid and dynamic expansion of general education has produced an ever-increasing demand for higher education unmatched by supply. This discrepancy has yielded a large number of secondary school graduates competing for limited numbers of higher (post-secondary) public education places in the Sultanate of Oman. This paper surveys the system of higher education in the Sultanate of Oman. It examines the challenge of access, equity and privatization in light of the current predicament of a disparity between supply and demand for higher education in the Sultanate of Oman. Results from the study indicate a lack of a consolidated system of higher education. The current system is managed by a number of different ministries and government authorities. There is no tradition of charging fees and tuition in the public system of higher education. Privatization of higher education in the Sultanate of Oman is a relatively recent market orientation phenomenon. There is no established mechanism for student loans in place. The practice of endowment and philanthropy in higher education is non-existent; this is exacerbated by an absence of allowable tax deductions for donations. The paper proposes a framework for a consolidated management system of higher education along with market orientation reforms and remedial strategies for higher education in the Sultanate of Oman.