Egypt Freezes New Institutes in Business, Commerce Fields

Egypt’s Ministry of Higher Education has announced a halt to the establishment of new higher institutes in several oversaturated academic fields, following a comprehensive review of graduate numbers and labor market demand.

Gouda Ghanem, Head of the Education Sector at the ministry, said the decision came after studies showed saturation in disciplines such as commerce, business administration, and information systems. He noted that the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence applications has further reduced demand for graduates from these fields. As a result, approvals for new institutes in these specializations have been suspended.

Ghanem also revealed that enrollment in engineering institutes has declined significantly. Some institutes have requested a freeze on admitting new students as a preliminary step toward closure, while others have shifted their academic focus from engineering to computer science to better match market needs.

Egypt currently has 182 higher institutes, which admitted more than 407,000 students during the 2025/2026 coordination year, accounting for around 45 percent of all students placed through the national admissions system. The total number of students enrolled across all academic levels in higher institutes stands at approximately 900,000, representing about 28 percent of the country’s university-level student population.