King Khalid University Scholarships for Non-Saudis — Bachelor's Scholarship

King Khalid University (KKU) is a public university based in Abha, in Saudi Arabia’s Asir region, with 26 colleges spread over 27 campuses. Its international-student site counts more than 2,000 students from 73 countries.

Non-Saudi students can hold a KKU scholarship through two routes. Internal scholarships are for non-Saudis already living in the kingdom on a legal residency, and cover bachelor’s and sub-degree diploma programs. The university’s General Administration for International Students opens the portal for them once a year.

External scholarships are for applicants living outside the kingdom, who register through the Ministry of Education’s Study in Saudi platform. Their benefits follow the Ministry’s national rules for scholarships at public universities.

Benefits & funding

Internal scholarship: a study place in the chosen program without tuition; the call states that admission is limited to an academic seat only.
Internal scholars receive no student reward (the allowance known as mukafaa), according to KKU’s admissions FAQ.
External scholarship: the same FAQ confirms the student reward is paid to external scholars.
Under the Ministry’s rules, external scholars also receive housing, health care for themselves and family members living with them, a payment on arrival, annual travel tickets, and the services other students use.
Neither KKU nor the Ministry states the reward amount.
For scale: without a scholarship, KKU charges international bachelor’s students SAR 950 to SAR 1,950 per credit hour, depending on the college.

Eligibility

Open to non-Saudi nationals of any country.
Internal route: a valid Saudi residency permit (iqama), uploaded with the application.
External route: applicants living outside Saudi Arabia.
Secondary school completed no more than five years before applying.
Internal route: a pass in the Qiyas General Aptitude Test and Achievement Test.
Age: no older than 25 for bachelor’s and sub-degree diploma programs; the Ministry’s rules set a minimum age of 17.
No earlier scholarship from any educational institution in Saudi Arabia.
Under the Ministry’s rules: a security clearance, a passing medical examination, approval from the home government where that country requires it, and a mahram (close male guardian) for female students.
Men and women both apply, through separate entries on the scholarship portal.

Can you apply?

Here's who can apply

Decoded from the official rules. A free account checks them against your passport, degree and age in seconds.

Education required
High School
Age requirement
17–25 yrs

Appears to be for women “for female”
confirm in the requirements

Check my eligibility — free

Circlebreaker is a free database of global fellowships, scholarships and programs — every one decoded like this.

We only check the criteria we have data for. Always confirm full eligibility on the official page before applying.

Application process

1
Pick the route: internal if you hold Saudi residency, external if you live abroad.
2
Internal applicants watch KKU’s announcements for the yearly call, then file an electronic request on the university’s scholarship portal for non-Saudis during the stated window.
3
Upload a copy of the secondary-school certificate and of the residency permit, and keep the request number.
4
Admission is processed automatically; no paper documents go to the administration, and the result appears on the portal.
5
External applicants register on the Study in Saudi platform and choose King Khalid University; the Ministry also accepts applications through the Saudi cultural attaché or embassy in the home country.

Program timeline

internal scholarship window for the 1441 AH academic year.
21 August – 4 September 2019
KKU announced the internal scholarship call for the 1446 AH academic year.
8 September 2024
the portal opened.
15 September 2024
the portal closed.
19 September 2024
Next cycle
no date published yet; past calls came near the start of the academic year.