Mid-year exams at Egyptian universities will commence on Saturday, 8 January 2011, and will continue for a period of three weeks ending on Thursday, 27 January, despite demands from Egypt's Coptic Church to postpone the examinations until after Coptic Christmas celebrations.
Coptic Christmas falls on 7 January.
On Tuesday, church officials reportedly called on Minister of Higher Education Hani Helal to request that mid-year examinations slated for 8 January be canceled.
According to one Coptic bishop, who spoke on condition of anonymity, Coptic Pope Shenouda III has received numerous complaints from Coptic university students regarding the timing of the examinations.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
