JEDDAH: Dar Al-Hekma College, the Kingdom’s first private women’s college, will soon be upgraded to the category of a private university following a decision by the Ministry of Higher Education.
As part of an initial step to upgrade the college into a university, Minister of Higher Education Khaled Al-Anqari approved a preliminary study to open four new faculties in the college, said Suhair Al-Qurashi, dean of Dar Al-Hekma College.
One of the new faculties is the Faculty of Health Sciences and Humanities, which will specialize in special education, nursing, and speech, hearing and occupational therapy. The Faculty of Law and International Relations will specialize in law, and diplomatic and international relations while the Faculty of Business and Economy will specialize in administrative information system, banking, financing, marketing, human resources and accounting. The Faculty of Design and Architecture will specialize in topics such as graphic design, interior design, dress design and architecture.
In a recent meeting, Al-Qurashi briefed the minister of higher education on developmental activities at the college, its future projects and high academic achievements.
The college has also signed cooperation agreements with US higher education institutes such as Berkeley University, Tufts University, Colorado University and Columbia University.
The college’s programs, which are designed to meet the needs of the local and international job markets, also prepare graduates for enrollment at internationally recognized universities for higher education.
