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29-01-2020

Oman Observer

The Ministry of Higher Education (MoHE) recently rejected some applications for equivalence of educational qualifications issued outside the Sultanate for violating norms and forgery. Equivalence is a process that sets out to assess the similarity of studies (or parts of studies) completed abroad with studies (or parts of studies) organised in educational institutions in the Sultanate.

The Committee responsible for recognising non-Omani higher education institutions and equivalent academic qualifications rejected the equivalency of the Bachelor of Science degree issued by India’s Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Avadh University in India in the year 2005 because it is not in the list of Indian institutions accredited to the ministry.

The committee also decided to reject a PhD in Philosophy by India’s Jawaharlal Nehru University in 2015 as the applicant had no bachelor’s and master’s degree approved by MoHE. It also rejected another PhD by Muhammad I University of Morocco in 2019 because the applicant did not obtain approval before joining the said educational institution, and the bachelor’s degree didn’t meet conditions. The diploma in humanities and literature issued by Mansoura University of Egypt in 2005 was found to be forged .

It decided not to equate a PhD in the field of political science issued from the Institute of Arab Research and Studies in Egypt in 2015 as the applicant failed to meet criteria of Ministry of Higher Education and Ministry of Defence.

The committee rejected BSc in Information Technology issued by India’s Sikkim Manipal University in 2007 as the course was done through distance education mode, which is not approved by the ministry. The applicant also did a training at National Institute of Computer and Technology (NICT), which is not accredited by Universities Grants Commission in India as a higher education institution.This also violates rules of equivalence.

The holder of Master’s degree in Business Administration issued by Sikkim Manipal University in India in the year 2010 was refused equivalence as the person had no bachelor’s degree, and the educational institution is not recommended place to study.

Master of Technology in Civil Engineering by the Pune Institute of Engineering and Technology under University of Pune in India in 2006, also failed to pass muster as the educational institution does not have an evaluation from the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) in India.

The equivalence for Master of Science in Leadership and Management issued by the University of Portsmouth in the United Kingdom in 2018 was rejected because the applicant did not obtain written approval from the ministry before starting the study, and the university equated years of experience with a number of accredited points.

The committee also rejected Master’s in public administration by the Indian School of Business Management and Administration (ISBMA) because the applicant had no bachelor’s degree or its equivalent.