A Special Model in International Relations, The Case of the Arab Open University Dr. Fairouz Farah Sarkis Director – Arab Open University

The Arab Open University (AOU) The creation of AOU came as a personal initiative by HRH Prince Talal Bin Abdulaziz, President of the Arab Gulf Program for United Nations Development Organizations (AGFUND) The university has seven branches: Lebanon, Jordan, Bahrain, Egypt, Oman, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia. Palestine and Yemen branches will be launched soon AOU is catering the educational needs of more than students across its branches

The International Relation Aspect A pan-Arab university supported by AGFUND Agreement with the Open University – United Kingdom Accreditation by the Open University Validation Services (OUVS) European standards by adhering to the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) code of practice

Relation with HQ and Branches Headquarters (HQ) located in Kuwait Common procedural, administrative, academic, and financial bylaws and regulations Branches adhere to these bylaws and regulations and to local accreditation needs Branches share same core curricula with some variations External Examiners monitor Examinations are simultaneous for all branches Auditing and Quality Assurance is done at branch level and HQ

Autonomous Branches Branches are autonomous and run financial, administrative and procedural affairs independently Each branch is licensed as an independent university in its own country, and follows the rules and regulations of that country. Any financial deficiency in any branch is supported by AGFUND

Public and Culture Relations And Media Quality Assurance Unit Office of Branch Director Legal Affairs Learning centersRegional centers Assistant to Branch Director for Administrative And Financial Affairs Assistant to Branch Director for Academic Affairs Educational Technologies & Information Financial Affairs Human Resources Public Services Administrative & Technical Support & Financial Affairs Academic Programs And Student Programs Supervisors Administrative & Technical Support & Financial Affairs Academic Programs Supervisors Admissions, Registration & Examination Student programs Student Affairs Admissions, Registration & Examination Academic Programs Supervisors AOU Organizational Charts-Branch Branch Council Branch Director

The UKOU-AOU Partnership Course material ▫ All material related to the licensed programmes are used by AOU (text, audio, video, etc….) Programme license The following programmes are licensed by UKOU ▫ Business, Economics, etc. ▫ Computer Programming, Networking, etc. ▫ English Language and Literature, etc. Help in New AOU Course writing ▫ AOU staff spend time in the UK to be trained on developing course material related either to a shared course or to any course AOU will offer independent of the UKOU courses

Help in acquiring Accreditation and Validation Accreditation and validation by OUVS confirms that both the institution and its programmes meet standards of quality set forth by Quality Assurance Agency (QAA). ▫ The purpose of accreditation and validation is to:  Use standards of evaluation to ensure quality education:  Ensure the accountability of AOU  Provide public confidence in AOU The UKOU-AOU Partnership - cntd

Use of E-library Training and support for Faculty ▫ Training faculty for each course before its delivery by AOU the first time Continuing consultation with UKOU faculty Training on Assessment ▫ Training on how to prepare exams and assignment that reflect learning outcomes, marking criteria, etc. Training on quality assurance (QA) Training on how to apply QA in all components of the institution Programmes updates ▫ Any update on the UKOU programmes is granted to AOU The UKOU-AOU Partnership - cntd

Experience exchange ▫ Several visits by UKOU and AOU staff is done regularly Partnership conferences ▫ At least two conferences are being done each year that include the great majority of staff AOU students are granted dual degrees ▫ UKOU degree ▫ AOU degree validated by each branch country The UKOU-AOU Partnership - cntd

Main benefits of the Agreement Licensing of courses and course materials ▫ Ensuring courses given by AOU are of high standards and competitive to the European market Accreditation and Validation ▫ Ensure high standards and confidence in AOU Website and resource access ▫ AOU students can benefit from OU resources Alumni ▫ Students can join and benefit from the OU Alumni association and network Branding and Promotion ▫ Dual degrees ensure that students are getting high end services

Impact of the Relations First Pan Arab University with European Standards Quality Assurance through the agreement with the OU Financial support from the AGFUND