Jordan’s 2004 - 2006 Higher Education Strategy and Action Plan is based on a vision of quality, high calibre education system capable of equipping students with the necessary intellectual and social skills, and a foundation of knowledge upon which to construct a successful career. The ultimate objective is to respond to society's present and future needs, and to attain comprehensive social and economic sustainable development.

The general policies envisaged in this strategy call for major reforms in processes, systems, and practices in higher education input and output. These can be realized by means of devising criteria and principles for institutional accreditation and programme validation, in compliance with pertinent international standards, that every institution of higher education in Jordan is henceforth, required to adhere to and fulfill.

In other words, it is high time for higher education institutions in Jordan to originate and initiate an effective systematic monitoring and evaluation of its operations' outcomes and impact. This monitoring system can be designed to incorporate what these institutions perceive to be their most influential or important outputs.

Against this background, the Jordanian Higher Education Council, which is entrusted with the task of outlining general education policies in Jordan, has seen it fit to launch the University Achievement Exam. Once realized, the exam is to be administered in respect of every Jordanian graduate from the various Jordanian universities operating in the Kingdom, both private and public. Likewise, students graduating from non-Jordanian universities will be required to take this exam if they wish to obtain equivalence for the certificates they have obtained.

As a matter of fact, this University Achievement Exam is presently administered and adopted by more than 6000 universities, colleges, and academic institutions worldwide.

What Are the Objectives of the University Achievement Exam

The exam aims at realising the following objectives:

• Presenting graduates with internationally acknowledged and recognized qualification certificates in the fields of their specialization.
• Providing Jordanian universities, the Jordanian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, and other educational institutions in Jordan with a database for reliable information that can be adopted in assessing and identifying needs for change to improve their curricula and course delivery techniques. Subsequently, these institutions will be in a better position to develop and advance quality assurance and excellence in their higher education operations and outcomes.
• Paving the way for Bachelor's students to obtain admission to graduate studies by means of presenting the University Achievement Exam Qualification Certificate. At the same time, a scholarship to pursue graduate studies might be easier to obtain for holders of this certificate.
• Holders of the University Achievement Exam Qualification Certificate will stand a good chance for recruitment at regional and international agencies which stipulate this certificate in addition to the other certificate(s) the applicant holds.

What Does the University Achievement Exam Assess

Generally speaking, questions of the University Achievement Exam serve as a measuring mechanism of how well students are mastering basic concepts in the fields of their specialization and their capabilities in terms of

• Astutely analyzing and solving problems with direct bearing to their fields of specialization.
• Understanding and comprehending the links and relationships between and among the various aspects of knowledge and sub-specialties that relate to their particular fields of specialization and study.
• Interpreting the significance and relationship of data, tabled figures and information, charts, statistical reports, graphs, etc.

The University Achievement Exam Questions

The University Achievement Exam is composed entirely of 120-150 objective multiple-choice questions. In their major part, the questions are intended to measure students’ abilities to acquire the basic concepts, knowledge and skills they are expected to grasp, during the past years of their study at the University, and to ensure that students can demonstrate competency and minimum standards in their respective fields of study. At the same time, however, the questions will not cover detailed issues pertaining to the students' course of study, neither will they touch on very general issues incorporated in the 'University Requirement' or 'Elective' courses which the students have studied as part of their study plans.

Who Writes the University Achievement Exam Questions?

An elite group of selected university professors, representing the wide spectrum of disciplines and specialisations offered by the various public and private universities operating in the Kingdom, join efforts in writing the University Achievement Exam questions, with the help and support of the Educational Testing Services ETS. Besides helping in writing the exam questions, ETS offers instruction, consultation, and technical assistance in organizing and conducting the exam. However, the whole process is to be accomplished and finalized in coordination with members of the Higher Committee for the University Achievement Exam, to be formed by a decision of the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research.

As a matter of fact, the participation of an international agency in the exam is crucial to ensuring an international recognition of its result. This international dimension would help students in gaining easy admission in postgraduate programmes offered by foreign universities, and securing, if and when possible, scholarships from regional and international donors and agencies

Exam Duration

The duration of the University Achievement Exam is two hours.

Exam Timing

The University Achievement Exam is administered three times per academic year: twice during the fourteenth week of the Fall and Spring semesters, and once during the sixth week of the summer session of each academic year. However, universities are free to hold more than one session, during the assigned weeks for the exam, each semester, in accordance with their semester calendar.

Who Sits for the Exam

• In implementation of the decision issued by the Higher Education Council, every Jordanian student attending any of the Jordanian universities operating in the Kingdom, whether private or public, and who is expected to graduate in a certain semester should take the University Achievement Exam, each according to his/her field of specialization. On the other hand, the exam is considered as optional for non-Jordanian students.
• At the same time, Jordanian students who have graduated from foreign universities and seek equivalence for the certificates they have obtained should sit for the exam prior to filing an application for their certificates' equivalence. This is in line with pertinent regulations and the procedures adopted by the Jordanian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.
• Only graduating students at the Bachelor's level are required to sit for the exam.

Exam Results

• The University Achievement Exam results are to be recorded on a scale from 120-200 points.
• Students who sit for the exam will be awarded a Qualification Certificate bearing the logo of the University they belong to, as well as the logo of the international agency (in this case, the Educational Testing Services (ETS)) which participated in administering the exam. The certificate will show the grade obtained by the student, and his rating (i.e, percentile) among his colleagues in the same specialization and at the same university. The student's rating, however, is not to appear on any other document or certificate issued or to be issued by his/her university.
• In accordance with the decision of the Higher Education Council, the students' graduation is by no means conditional on their passing this exam. Nevertheless, it is conditional on their sitting for the exam.

What are the Anticipated Benefits of the Exam

Results of the University Achievement Exam are to be classified into five major categories:

• The student's standard in comparison with his/her colleagues from the same university.
• The student's standard in comparison with his/her colleagues in the same specialization from other universities in Jordan.
• The student's standard in comparison with his/her colleagues in the same specialization from other universities worldwide.
• Each Jordanian university's standard in comparison with counterpart universities operating in the Kingdom.
• Each Jordanian university's standard in comparison with counterpart universities worldwide.
• Thus, the University Achievement Exam's results are of crucial importance and significance to every graduating student; every academic department in each Jordanian university; every Jordanian university operating in the Kingdom, whether private or public; the overall status and standard of higher education in Jordan, as well as local, regional and international agencies and institutions which take the exam results into account when considering opportunities for students' recruitment in the future.
• The University Achievement Exam results may prove beneficial and of high significance in terms of:
  • Providing an opportunity for each student to conduct self-assessment of his/her standard, performance and achievement in comparison with his/her colleagues in the same specialization and from the same university.
  • Providing an opportunity for each academic department to evaluate its curricula and study plan, with particular emphasis on Specialization Courses, by means of assessing the results obtained by its students in relation to those attained by their colleagues from the same department at counterpart Jordanian universities and in relation to Jordanian colleagues, also belonging to the same department/specialization, but have obtained their degrees from foreign universities.
  • Providing an opportunity for universities operating in the Kingdom, both private and public to measure and evaluate the standard of every specialization they offer by means of comparing the results obtained by its students in each specialization, in comparison with the results obtained by their colleagues in the same specialization at other Jordanian universities.
  • Providing an opportunity for universities and academic institutions in Jordan to conduct analyses and comparative studies in relation to Jordanian student results in a certain subject with colleagues studying the same subject at foreign universities.
  • In the long run, and if successive classes of graduating students from the same university score the highest mark in a certain specialization/discipline, the respective university will, eventually, serve as a centre of excellence in this particular specialization, not to mention the acclaimed reputation and bright image that this university will acquire locally, regionally and internationally.
  • Given the tough competition amongst graduates to secure employment in local, regional, and international institutions, the results of the University Achievement Exam will, as a matter of fact, determine each student's success in securing a placement, on competitive basis, according to his/her standards, aptitudes, and academic records.
  • Eventually, the University Achievement Exam will create an atmosphere of competition between counterpart specializations and disciplines offered by the various universities. Subsequently, this competition will urge universities to continuously revise, develop and update their curricula, study plans and courses in keeping with new trends and innovations; to upgrade their teaching methodologies; to enhance the skills, performance and training of their faculty; and to provide the best possible ambiance, facilities, resources and services for the overall teaching/learning process on their campuses.

Exam Venue

The University Achievement Exam is to be administered within the campus of the university that the student belongs to. Exam preparation and organization is the collective responsibility of the university, the Educational Testing Services (ETS),and the Higher Exam Committee.

As for Jordanian students who graduated from foreign universities, the Jordanian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research shoulders the responsibility of assigning dates and venues for their exam, and attending to all necessary arrangements and preparations.

Repeating the Exam

Each student is entitled to sit up to three times for the University Achievement Exam. However, it is a must that the student sit for the exam the first time at the end of the semester he/she is expected to graduate in.

Exam's Content

• A ratio of 25% - 40% of the University Achievement Exam questions are designed to test students' cognitive knowledge and familiarity with vocabularies, facts, attitudes, methods, principles, and concepts relating to their field of specialization.
• A ratio of 25% - 40% of the University Achievement Exam questions are designed to test students' abilities to comprehend and understand written information, written reports, tables, graphs and charts, instructions and conditions with direct bearing to their field of specialization.
• A ratio of 30% - 50% of the University Achievement Exam questions are designed to test students' capabilities to put into practice certain concepts, certain procedures, certain methodologies, certain principles, and certain theories in relation to their field of specialization.

Exam's Fees