Islamic Sciences Accreditation Agency (IAA), which holds the distinction of being the first organization established in the field of Islamic Theology in the world, completed the “Accreditation and External Evaluator Training Program with International Participation” at the Istanbul Grand Cevahir Hotel. The program, held on November 2-3, 2019, at the Istanbul Grand Cevahir Hotel, was attended by Deans, Vice Deans, academic staff, and students from many countries spanning from Southeast Asia to Africa.
Speaking at the opening of the program, Prof. Dr. Halis Aydemir, President of the Board of Directors of IAA, emphasized the importance of quality in Islamic theology education. Expressing that quality provides benefit to the extent that it transforms into efficiency and transparency, Aydemir stated that quality practices that remain merely formal turn into an extra burden. Continuing his speech, Aydemir said: “The reason for the rapid development of the quality and accreditation process in the higher education of Islamic sciences stems from the fact that Islamic academia is inherently prepared for this due to its own teachings. This is because the totality of quality stages fully matches Islamic teachings. In this context, we see signs that the quality culture will be rapidly internalized in the higher education of Islamic sciences, both nationally and internationally.”
Stating that there was an intense international demand for the International Accreditation and Independent Evaluator Training Program, Aydemir expressed his regret that not all requests could be met. He noted that a new training program would be organized abroad in order to fulfill the requests of the participants and meet the intense demand. Pointing out the importance for our country that such an international program in Theology/Islamic Sciences Higher Education was held for the first time in Turkey, Aydemir emphasized that this would also make significant contributions to the relations between Turkey and the Islamic World.
Speaking at the opening of the program, Dr. Ibrahim al-Ansari, Dean of the College of Sharia and Islamic Studies at Qatar University, said: “We started these efforts in 2015 and saw a great gap in this field. We searched for an accrediting body to become accredited, but we could not find an accreditation organization in this discipline. This became a very significant opportunity for us. We believe that quality is a culture. Quality culture is a global culture. If quality does not translate into results, it remains formal. I would like to thank Prof. Dr. Halis Aydemir, President of IAA, for initiating this process. If Faculties of Islamic Sciences and Theology progress in quality, it means the development of the ummah. I thank the president of accreditation and the board members once again.”
Prof. Dr. Wan Kamal bin Mujani, Dean of the Faculty of Islamic Studies at the National University of Malaysia, began his speech by saying: “I would like to thank the President of the Board of Directors, the board members of IAA, and all the staff who organized this event.” Prof. Dr. Wan Kamal continued: “I learned a great deal about quality initiatives during the previous IAA meeting. Although the tools regarding quality may differ in each country, the objectives are globally shared. With what we have learned here, I hope to find solutions to our efficiency and administrative challenges. I am here to serve as the representative of IAA in Malaysia.”
Dr. Mohammad Syairozu Dimyathi Ilyas, Dean of the Faculty of Islamic Sciences in Indonesia, expressed his great pleasure at being present in this wonderful environment at the beginning of his speech. Continuing his statement, Dr. Mohammad Syairozu said: “I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to Prof. Dr. Halis Aydemir for his opening remarks. I brought you greetings from our largest university in Jakarta. My university received accreditation from a local agency in Jakarta. Insha’Allah, we will also gain accreditation for my faculty from here. I thank the agency officials once again for providing such an opportunity.”
Following the two-day training, international accreditation and evaluator training certificates were presented to the participants by Prof. Dr. Halis Aydemir.
