344 chapter eight
To be an international centre of educational excellence which inte-
grates Islamic revealed knowledge and values in all disciplines and
which aspires to the restoration of the Ummah’s leading role in all
branches of knowledge. (ibid.)IIUM operates under the direction of a Board of Governors with
representatives from the eight sponsoring governments and the
Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC). It maintains links with
governments and institutions all over the world, such as the League
of Islamic Universities, the International Association of Universities
and the Association of Commonwealth Universities. It is also affiliated
with several Malaysian-based businesses that provide opportunities
for students to gain practical work experience.
Currently, in 2006, IIUM is home to 15,000 students and 3,000
teaching and administrative staffmembers. Many of the students and
members of the academic staff are expatriates. In all, about 100
countries are represented. This is a far cry from its humble begin-
nings in 1983 when it operated from temporary quarters with 153
students and a handful of lecturers and administrators (ibid.).
Most importantly, IIUM is committed to: “To revive and revitalise
the Islamic concepts and traditions of learning, which regard the
quest for knowledge as an act of worship and the spirit of science
as emanating from the holy Qur"àn. The university endeavours to
introduce a unified teaching and learning process along with the
inculcation of moral and spiritual values through Integration, Islam-
isation, Internationalisation and Comprehensive Excellence (IIICE).”,
(ibid.)
IIUM offers a wide range of academic programmes geared towards
both skill-building and scholastic attainments and designed in accor-
dance with IIUM’s philosophy, which is built upon the belief that
knowledge must be pursued and propagated in the spirit of Tawhìd,
as an act of worship, in full recognition that it is a trust which Allah
has placed upon mankind, (ibid.).
It might be interesting to look into the University’s philosophy as
it emphasises the Islamic input of knowledge, as shown below:
- Knowledge shall be propagated in the spirit of Tawhìd, leading
towards the recognition of Allah as the Absolute Creator and
Master of mankind. - The recognition of Allah as the Absolute Creator and Master of
mankind represents the apex in the hierarchy of knowledge. - Knowledge is a trust (amanah) from Allah and its development