JEDDAH, 1 June 2005 — After years of study, 30 young women will be awarded their diplomas from Effat College — its first graduating class.
“Today is our harvest day as Effat College strives to achieve an international standard in academic education,” said Dr. Haifa Jamal Alail, the college’s dean.
Effat College is keen on collaborating with international colleges with advanced programs that match its own programs and traditions, including the US institutions Duke University, Georgetown University, Wilson College, Mount Holyoke College, Smith College and Bryn Mawr College, along with LaSalle College in Canada.
“Exchanging thoughts, experiences and ideas with international academic institutions is one of the best ways to accomplish our goals,” she said. “Our agreements with these international institutions includes exchanging faculty members, administrative staff, students, curriculum and much more.”
The college recently hosted a group of four Duke faculty as part of its ongoing cooperation with that university’s Pratt School of Engineering to launch the first engineering programs for women in Saudi Arabia.
The primary objective of the visit was finalizing the curriculum for the new programs in computer and electrical engineering, biomedical engineering and architecture in line with international accreditation standards.
The educators also exchanged ideas about teaching pedagogy for the new engineering programs and identifying the remaining facilities and equipment requirements needed to support the programs.
