Graduated with a GPA of 3.65 from NUS. Got official acceptance after 4 follow-ups.

Going to Stanford - ICME !

Very excited :D its a great opportunity and i hope i am able to do well

Low gpa , expected.

E-mail , saying that I'm not good enough. People say chances are higher in spring semester.

Exceptional Thesis work and 3 publications. KAUST carefully reviews whether your thesis subject coincides with their work , if not , your GPA and GRE scores are less likely to get you at KAUST.

Goodbye dream school , at least I got offers from 2 IVY league schools.

ONE PERSON SAYING WAIT LISTED, THE OTHER REJECTED. WHICH PERSON TO LISTEN TO?

Some people need to get their facts right. KAUST publishes a monthly newspaper by the name of "Beacon" which is available on its website too. There are a number of statistics available on those newspapers with regards to admissions. Last time I checked, 30% of the students were Saudis, 34% were Asians, 10% from US, 16% from middle east and north africas and 10% from the rest of the world (EU, Australia etc). So Asians should be the last ones complaining about discrimination. Just because a lot of asians are being rejected doesn't mean KAUST doesn't like them, it simply mean KAUST is receiving a lot more applications from the nearby countries in Asia as opposed to western countries so there are obviously going to be a lot more competition and a lot more rejections. I do agree though that KAUST is in fact trying to increase the % of Saudi students because there were 30% Saudis in 2011 and 39% in 2012. But why shouldn't it accommodate Saudi students? It is a Saudi university run on Saudi money so why do people have a problem with Saudi students in KAUST? I'm sure every other university in the world has certain criteria in place with regards to domestic vs international students. My 2 cents.

Interviewed by 2 professor on SKYPE individually. One is my potential advisor, and the other is the admission committee. The first talk is more like a casual one, and the second is more formal that the professor asked some question about Solid State Physics. Informed by the professor that I'll get an admission letter 2 weeks later. rnHoray!!!!!!!!

I am the person who started the whole argument. I just want to point out that what I am saying are facts not lies or uncertain information. I have contacts in KAUST and what I am saying is 100% true. If you have contacts there you can ask them yourself. They are aiming at increasing the number of Saudi students, and some Saudi applicants are accepted without even providing TOEFL or GRE scores (and their undergrad education is in Arabic), KAUST accepts them and offers them special English courses to enhance their language. Just imagine someone who has high scores, is recommended by kaust faculty and passed the interviews, then rejected to be replaced by a less qualified applicant just because of nationality. I am not insulting them, I am criticizing them, and I have the right to do so. If you don't want to believe it, it is up to you, but you don't have the right to call me a liar!

I, too , think KAUST s name should not be insulted with uncertain information, be aware of the fact that there are more than 100 countries in the world so diversity of ideas is normal ,"freedom of expression" has different limits for every culture , judging a society as "backminded" , you can't judge someone for not thinking like u. Familiarize yourself with "diversity".

I think the person who got rejected has every right to express his anger, especially if he feels that the selection was biased. To the person who is objecting below, try to familiarize yourself with the phrase “freedom of expression.” Unless of course you come from a backward close-minded society.

Where the hell do you know that the university and the country is racist , you shouldn't insult KAUST's name and the whole country, just because you're rejected . I'm rejected today also , I still believe KAUST is one of the world's best and my rejection means that I'm not good enough for them , I have the right to reapply ,so do you . You don't know that the university is reserving places for saudi natives , So don't lie cuz of your anger.

heart borken. Totally agree with post below. By the way, if so many students are rejected then who is being accepted? I will be shocked if they offer admissions to applicants who are yet to be scheduled for skype interview.

I just want to mention that KAUST is rejecting many international excellent applicants to reserve places for Saudi applicants and most of them are not well qualified. Our nationality plays a vital role in the admission process. This is so discriminating! I know many excellent applicants who are even recommended by KAUST faculty and passed the interviews and then rejected from the admission. And I don't believe that this will make kaust move forward as expected! We should find another university that values us better!