This book focuses on two crucial issues that need to be addressed as a matter of urgency by
universities in the Arab region namely (a) conducting independent assessments of the quality
of their teaching research administration governance and planning and (b) determining the
relevance of their teaching research and societal impacts. Although well-established around
the world in manufacturing industries and private-sector service industries including the
research and commercialisation arms of the major universities and research institutes it is
only in recent years that quality-assurance (QA) assessments have started to be applied to most
aspects education. Several Arab universities are adopting various forms of QA but some variants
are little more than bureaucratic box-ticking exercises with minimal commitment by staff to the
ultimate aim of continuing self-improvement. This book will be of interest to senior management
at faculty and departmental level and above in all Arab universities specifically and more
generally in Islamic institutions of higher education. Senior management in other universities
especially in the developing world will benefit from its analyses and recommendations.
