Deanship of Undergraduate Studies for Girls

Establishment and Development:

Since the establishment of the first college in it, the history of Umm Al-Qura University is an escalating line in growth and development, which attempts to keep up with the rapidly changing circumstances of our era, whether in sciences and curriculums, or in the ever-renewing requirements of the uprising and the comprehensive development witnessed by our country nowadays.

The study by affiliation in the girls department started in 1387 A.H.

In 1391 A.H., all the girls became regular students after the affiliation system was canceled.

In 1403 A.H., the girls department was called the Deanship of Undergraduate Studies for Girls. A dean and a deputy were appointed for it, and many deans and deputies assumed this post.

The activities of this deanship grew in the recent years concerning educational and administration aspects, as well as religious, cultural and social activities.

In 1420 A.H., a female dean was appointed, and she was given such facilities that facilitate the work, speed up the procedure and achieve some independence in the administrative and organizational matters.

Concerning increasing the space of the female students' building, as they have been suffering from the narrow space and the deteriorating status of the old building, the rulers have quickly responded to this. The Servant of the Two Sacred Mosques, King Fahd ibn `Abdul-`Aziz (may Allah protect him), kindly granted the Guest House to Umm Al-Qura University, so that it is used in developing the female students building in Al-Zahir and add more space to the old building due to the increase in the number of female students. Since the university received the building in 1/11/1417 A.H., they made design plans for the new projects to be held in that building.

In the academic year 1416/1417 A.H., her Highness the wife of the Servant of the Two Sacred Mosques gave a generous donation of twenty million dollars to build a new lectures room.

In Jumada Al-Akhira of 1418 A.H., Umm Al-Qura University was honored by His Royal Highness, Prince Nayif ibn `Abdul-`Aziz Al-Su`ud, putting the cornerstone in the project of developing the female students building in Al-Zahir for Al-Shuhada' palace. On the same occasion, his Highness ordered that his own palace that lies next to the old female students building be granted to the university out of support to seekers of knowledge. Thanks to the generous support by the government, the university quickly invested this palace and provided it with studios and offices, while constructing buildings on its land. Not a long time passed until those buildings were constructed, and a large part of them has already been activated, including some of the colleges, classrooms, and halls of activities, seminars and studios.

On Al-Zahir land, and in the building of female students in Umm Al-Qura University, the year 1421 A.H. witnessed a great epic of construction that was motivated by love for this generous country and thankfulness for those who contributed to it. The building of the lectures hall was inaugurated; it carries the name "Al-Jawharah hall" to honor her Highness Princess Al-Jawharah Al-Barahim. The hall has enough space for seven hundred seats, and it includes a theatre that was equipped with many state-of-the-art techniques such as:

• Sound system for the main hall.
• Internal communication system.
• Cinema display system.
• Cinema recording system.
• Lighting system.
• Electrically-controlled display from the monitoring room.
• Moving theatre curtains that can be electrically controlled from the stage.
• Central hours system, intercom system, fire alarm system, educational television system, and telephones system.

As for the building, it consists of four floors and a basement that has a hall used as a permanent exhibition. While designing the building, it was taken into consideration that the student facilities, laboratories and services occupy the ground floor. As for the classrooms, they exist in the first and second floors. The third floor is dedicated to deanships of colleges, and they are reached by elevators spread everywhere.

In the same year, and during the celebration of inaugurating Al-Jawharah hall, her Highness Princess Al-Jawharah Al-Barahim announced another generous bounty on her part that can be added to the series of bounties given by the rulers; she announced a fifty-thousand-Riyal-prize to be given annually to the remarkable female students in the following fields:

Postgraduate studies.

• Natural sciences.
• Social and human sciences.
• Nursing.

In addition to a shield and an honorary certificate for each student who is given a prize.

May Allah bless the efforts and bounties of her Highness the Princess.

1. The projects carried out and helped in developing the female students building in Al-Zahir (Guest House):
   • Establishing the pedestrians' bridge building.
   • Establishing the separate deanships building.
   • Establishing the multi-purpose hall building.
   • Establishing the building that encompasses the Da`wah and Fundamentals of Religion college, and Arabic Language college.
   • Establishing the deanship of undergraduate studies for girls building.
   • Establishing the large lectures hall building (Al-Jawharah hall).
   • Establishing the Shari`ah and Islamic Studies college building.
   • Establishing the laboratories of the Applied Sciences college building.
   • Establishing the educational television building.

1. The new projects that are being currently executed:

• The project of establishing the Applied Sciences college building for girls.

• The project of enhancing the old female students building.

The authorities of the dean of the undergraduate studies for girls include:

• Supervising the administrative and financial matters in the deanship.
• Coordinating with the deans of colleges, institutes and separate deanships in the matters of undergraduate studies for girls.
• Supervising the attendance of girls in study in the different departments and students services.
• Supervising the activities of departments, deanships and centers.
• Supervising the educational television.
• Supervising all the summer activities and those of the general cultural committee for women.
• Contributing to scientific conferences.
• Supporting and contributing to charitable activities inside and outside the university.
• Developing the administrative skills of the university staff in the girls department.
• Holding a number of cultural weeks, symposiums and intellectual conversations, and entertaining some important people whether from the university or outside it.