Saudi Scholarship Cs Ai Cybersecurity Universities
CS / AI / Cybersecurity — Approved Universities (2026-2027 Scholarship)
Extracted from the Saudi Scholarship University Guide
Majors covered: Programming & Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Information Security, Software Engineering, Data Sciences, Computer Engineering, Network Engineering
SAT NOT Required
Canada
| University | Acceptance | Notes | |—|—|—| | University of Alberta | ~58% | Excellent AI/ML (Amii institute), strong CS | | University of Waterloo | ~53% (overall) | World-class CS & cybersecurity, co-op program. CS-specific acceptance is ~10% — far more competitive than the institution-wide figure | | University of British Columbia | ~52% | Strong CS, beautiful campus | | McGill University | ~47% | Strong CS, prestigious | | Université de Montréal | ~50% | Strong AI, French-speaking. MILA is a multi-university institute (UdeM, McGill, Polytechnique Montréal, HEC Montréal) — not exclusive to UdeM |
Australia
| University | Acceptance | Notes | |—|—|—| | Macquarie University | ~70%+ | Strong IT & cybersecurity | | University of Adelaide | ~75% | Good CS, high acceptance | | University of Sydney | ~30% | Strong CS but competitive | | UNSW Sydney | ~30% | Excellent CS/cybersecurity | | Monash University | ~40% | Good CS, decent acceptance | | University of Melbourne | ~70%+ (intl) | Strong CS |
United Kingdom
| University | Acceptance | Notes | |—|—|—| | University of Edinburgh | ~10-15% | Excellent CS & AI, strong research | | University of Manchester | ~13% | Strong CS, good acceptance for intl | | University of Bristol | ~12% | Strong CS & cybersecurity | | University of Glasgow | ~20% | Good CS, accessible | | University of Birmingham | ~14% | Good CS | | University of Southampton | ~14% | Strong CS & AI | | University of Warwick | ~14% | Strong CS | | University of Leeds | ~20%+ | Good CS, accessible | | University of Nottingham | ~15% | Good CS | | University of Sheffield | ~15% | Good CS & cybersecurity | | Newcastle University | ~20%+ | Good CS, accessible | | Queen Mary University of London | ~18% | Good CS | | Cardiff University | ~20%+ | Good CS, accessible | | University of Liverpool | ~15% | Good CS | | University of Exeter | ~15% | Good CS | | Imperial College London | ~11% | Elite CS (competitive) | | UCL | ~12% | Elite CS/AI (competitive) | | University of Cambridge | ~16% (intl) | Elite — very hard | | University of Oxford | ~14% | Elite — very hard | | King’s College London | ~13% | Strong CS, competitive |
Europe
| University | Country | Acceptance | Notes | |—|—|—|—| | Eindhoven University of Technology | Netherlands | Moderate | Strong tech focus | | Delft University of Technology | Netherlands | Moderate | Top engineering, good CS | | University of Amsterdam | Netherlands | Accessible | Good CS/AI | | Politecnico di Milano | Italy | Moderate | Good engineering, CS | | University of Bologna | Italy | Accessible | Oldest university, solid CS | | Technical University of Munich | Germany | Moderate | Excellent CS, tuition-free | | RWTH Aachen University | Germany | Moderate | Strong engineering/CS | | Technische Universität Berlin | Germany | Moderate | Strong CS | | Université PSL | France | Competitive | Elite French university | | Sorbonne University | France | Moderate | Strong CS | | Institut Polytechnique de Paris | France | Competitive | Strong engineering/CS | | Université Paris-Saclay | France | Moderate | Strong CS/AI | | Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München | Germany | Moderate | Good CS |
Asia
| University | Country | Acceptance | Notes | |—|—|—|—| | KAIST | South Korea | Very competitive | Top CS/AI, full scholarships | | Seoul National University | South Korea | Very competitive | Excellent CS | | Yonsei University | South Korea | Competitive | Good CS | | Korea University | South Korea | Competitive | Good CS | | Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU) | South Korea | Moderate | Good CS | | Kyoto University | Japan | Competitive (intl) | Strong CS | | University of Tokyo | Japan | Very competitive | Top CS | | NTU Singapore | Singapore | Very competitive | Top CS/AI | | NUS | Singapore | Very competitive | Top CS | | University of Hong Kong | Hong Kong | Competitive | Strong CS | | CUHK (Chinese University of Hong Kong) | Hong Kong | Competitive | Strong CS | | HKUST | Hong Kong | Competitive | Excellent CS/engineering | | City University of Hong Kong | Hong Kong | Moderate | Good CS | | Hong Kong Polytechnic University | Hong Kong | Moderate | Good CS | | University of Science and Technology of China | China | Competitive | Excellent CS | | Fudan University | China | Competitive | Strong CS | | Nanjing University | China | Competitive | Strong CS | | Wuhan University | China | Moderate | Good CS | | Xi’an Jiaotong University | China | Moderate | Good engineering/CS | | Huazhong University of Science and Technology | China | Moderate | Good CS | | Tongji University | China | Moderate | Good CS | | Harbin Institute of Technology | China | Moderate | Strong engineering/CS |
SAT REQUIRED (or ACT)
These are mostly US public universities.
United States
| University | SAT/ACT | Acceptance | Notes | |—|—|—|—| | Purdue University | Required | ~53% | Excellent CS & cybersecurity | | University of Wisconsin–Madison | Required | ~54% | Very strong CS | | University of Maryland, College Park | Required | ~44% | Strong CS & cybersecurity | | University of Texas at Austin | Required | ~29% | Excellent CS (competitive) | | University of Washington | Required | ~48% | Top CS program | | Georgia Institute of Technology | Required | ~13-14% overall (~9% intl) | Top CS/cybersecurity — very competitive for international applicants | | Michigan State University | Test-Optional* | ~83% | Good CS, high acceptance | | Northeastern University | Test-Optional* | ~5-6% | Elite selectivity now (98K+ applicants). Co-op is strong, but admission is Ivy-adjacent — very hard to get into | | Virginia Tech | Test-Optional* | ~57% | Strong engineering/CS | | Pennsylvania State University | Test-Optional* | ~54% | Good CS | | Texas A&M University | Test-Optional* | ~63% | Good CS | | University of Florida | Required | ~30% | Strong CS | | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | Required | ~45% | Excellent CS (competitive) | | Ohio State University | Test-Optional* | ~53% | Good CS | | University of Pittsburgh | Test-Optional* | ~50% | Good CS | | Duke University | Test-Optional* | ~5.2% | Elite (MIT-tier, skip) | | Northwestern University | Test-Optional* | ~7% | Elite (skip) | | USC (University of Southern California) | Test-Optional* | ~10% | Elite (skip) | | UC Santa Barbara | Test-Blind | ~26% | Good CS (UC system ignores SAT) | | UC Irvine | Test-Blind | ~21% | Good CS (UC system ignores SAT) |
Test-Optional = SAT not mandatory but can help if you have a good score
Top 10 Recommendations (Best Chance + Strong Program)
| # | University | Country | SAT? | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Alberta | Canada | No | ~58% accept, top AI lab, affordable, on list |
| 2 | Macquarie University | Australia | No | ~70%+ accept, strong cybersecurity, IELTS only |
| 3 | Michigan State University | USA | Test-Optional | ~83% accept, solid CS, can apply without SAT |
| 4 | Purdue University | USA | Yes | ~53% accept, top CS/cybersec IF you take SAT |
| 5 | University of Wisconsin–Madison | USA | Yes | ~54% accept, excellent CS IF you take SAT |
| 6 | University of Adelaide | Australia | No | ~75% accept, good CS, high acceptance |
| 7 | Texas A&M University | USA | Test-Optional | ~63% accept, good CS |
| 8 | University of Amsterdam | Netherlands | No | Accessible, good CS/AI |
| 9 | Eindhoven University of Technology | Netherlands | No | Strong tech, accessible |
| 10 | Politecnico di Milano | Italy | No | Good CS/engineering, moderate entry |
What You Actually Need
| Requirement | SAT-Free Path | SAT Path |
|---|---|---|
| Standardized test | Not needed | SAT (1300+ target) or ACT (28+) |
| English test | IELTS 6.0-6.5 or TOEFL 80+ | IELTS 6.0-6.5 or TOEFL 80+ |
| High school GPA | 80-85%+ | 3.0/4.0 GPA+ |
| Personal statement | Yes | Yes |
| Recommendation letters | 1-2 | 1-2 |
Quick Advice
If you want the easiest path: go for University of Alberta or Macquarie University. No SAT, high acceptance, strong CS/AI/cybersecurity reputation, and both are on the scholarship program’s approved list. You only need your high school transcript and an English test (IELTS/TOEFL).
Disclaimer: SAT policies change. Always verify on the university’s official admissions page. This list is based on the Saudi Scholarship Guide for 2026-2027.