Graduate Student Affairs Unit
The Graduate Student Affairs Unit, led by Dr. Abdullah Bakri, is one of the central units in the administrative system of the Islamic University of Minnesota - Main Campus. Its role can be summarized as providing necessary services to students, contributing to the comprehensive development of the university student's personality at the graduate level (master's and doctoral), as highlighted in this report prepared with the assistance of the unit's director. The report sheds light on the unit's nature of work, its functions, administrative structure, and the challenges it faces.
Objectives of the Unit
Based on the general information obtained from the director of the unit, Dr. Abdullah Bakri, the unit aims to build trust bridges between students and the university. It seeks to safeguard the rights of graduate students in all aspects guaranteed by the university system and prevailing regulations. The unit collaborates with various administrative units within the university as a unified team to serve graduate students, overcome obstacles, and establish an integrated database for graduate students.
Primary Responsibilities of the Unit
The Graduate Student Affairs Unit is tasked with numerous daily and interconnected responsibilities with other units, colleges, and departments. Key responsibilities include communication with university departments to support student affairs management goals, providing services to graduate students, monitoring their educational progress, guiding their academic paths, welcoming new students, nurturing talented graduate students, addressing student problems in collaboration with relevant university entities, and creating an educational environment that supports creativity and innovation.
Major Achievements during the Second Semester
According to the esteemed director, Dr. Abdullah Bakri, the unit's notable achievements during the second semester include the restructuring and organizational organization of student affairs in graduate studies. This includes the appointment of deputies for some academic departments in graduate studies and the recognition of disciplined students in the first month of the second semester (66 master's students and 25 doctoral students).
Administrative Structure
Dr. Abdullah Yahya Ibrahim Bakri leads the administrative structure as the director of the Graduate Student Affairs Unit. He is assisted by Dr. Ibrahim Naeem Abdulfattah, responsible for department heads in graduate studies, followed by Mr. Samir Shawaf, responsible for monitoring graduate students, Ms. Bayan Mohammed Bawakid, the unit's media representative, and Ms. Marwa Qasim Abdulwasea, the unit's secretary and archivist.
Key Challenges
Dr. Bakri acknowledges that no human work is without challenges. He highlights several problems facing the Graduate Student Affairs Unit, such as timing discrepancies preventing some students from attending lectures, absenteeism, especially among African students, and issues related to the internet's inadequacy in Africa affecting attendance. Moreover, challenges arise when opening new departments, making it difficult to appoint a head from the same department, leading to the appointment of a head from another department. Continuous changes in lecture schedules in some departments contribute to the proliferation of makeup classes, increasing student absenteeism.