IN 1955, Effat Al-Thinayaan, wife of King Faisal, opened Dar Al-Hanan, the first girl’s secondary school in Saudi Arabia. The school was the realization of her dream to provide women access to higher education with the aim of serving her community and country. Effat College thus exists in response to a need in the Kingdom. In August 1999, the college opened on a campus alongside the original Dar Al-Hanan School.
The college’s vision for academic excellence emphasizes that “teaching is in keeping with the Islamic traditions of learning and the values of our society.” The college’s commitment to the personal development of its students addresses the demands of a world of challenges for modern Muslim women. Its approach to education is reflected in its aims which are “to assist the students in their goals for success in the college, their careers and their personal lives.”
A brief glance at the list of courses offered shows that the emphasis is on new technology but never forgetting the religious and cultural traditions of the Kingdom. Courses in Islamic Studies, Rhetoric and Arabic Language are as common as Computer Architecture and Software Engineering. The degree courses range from B.Sc. in Computer Science to a B.Sc. in Kindergarten and Children’s Education. All prepare students to operate efficiently in the fields of research and primary education.
To lighten academic matters, extracurricular activities are featured. While not forming part of the main curriculum, they provide much-needed breaks in long periods of study and concentration. In keeping with its approach, Effat College values the idea that learning is a total experience and ought to be fun!
To provide a congenial environment, Effat College boasts the latest facilities on its well-equipped campus. The academic, administrative and residential facilities are located around the centrally located mosque. The Science and Computer Science buildings are fully fitted with state-of-the-art electronics and the Science Faculty has laboratories for practical learning and examinations. The campus has a modern auditorium and theater which can accommodate over a thousand. The regular ‘Speaker of the Month’ sessions as well as the formal presentation of college honors are held.
The heart of an academic institution is its library and the Effat College Library was designed to be user-friendly. It delivers all the modern services of an information age library. It has an increasing range of material, emphasizing and relating to the college courses. One goal is to develop a digital library which will offer a collection of the best digital resources available. Students already have access to an online public access catalogue (OPAC) on computers equipped with Internet and subscription databases. Internet searches can be easily carried out; the whole world of learning is accessible.
Inevitably, study and the desire for excellence produces pressure on students and their families. The Student Counseling Center was set up to anticipate questions and problems arising from the personal and academic areas of student life. If it were unvisited, this would indicate that there were real problems in the college — for no institution based on personal development is free of personal or study problems. The question is, what is done about them?
When the Counseling Center announced that it “had been a hive of activity” during the last academic year, it also breathed a sigh of relief. It was a mark of the mutual respect and trust on the part of students and staff that “a problem shared is a problem halved.” The center reflects the close relationship between staff and student body and the mutual desire for academic and personal success.
What do the students think of the college? They speak for themselves, confidently and with feeling. “Everyone in the college makes you feel like you belong.” “I can be with my family and get a world-class education.” The college “is where I can open my heart and be listened to.” One student, herself a mother, understood the relationship between student and college in a way that reflects the essence of its vision and aims. “My life has changed completely since I came to Effat College. My lecturers take time to teach me how to be confident. They listen to my opinions and guide me. As a mother, I have learned how to handle my children better. I understand myself better.” If you’re trying to build a generation of confident, educated women to take part in developing Saudi Arabia, what better place could you look?