STUDENTS

Criterion 1 requires that (a) students be evaluated, advised, and monitored in a manner consistent with program objectives and (b) there are proper procedures for evaluating courses taken at other institutions and accepting transfer students.  Student performance is evaluated through a variety of course materials and is reflected in the assigned grades for each student.  Faculty members monitor each student’s progress towards graduation and enforce transfer policies through mandatory advising, on a semester-by-semester basis.

·         Student Admissions into KAU Faculty of Engineering

Admission to the Faculty of Engineering is competitive and selective.  Only the top 10% of the Secondary school graduates have a chance of being admitted into the Faculty each year.  Admission is based on a combination of the student score in the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE), known as THANAWIA, and scores in two standard national exams organized and administered by the “National Center for Assessment in Higher Education” (QIYAS).  These two Exams are:

1.       General Aptitude Test, known as QUDRAT. 

2.       Scientific Track Admission Test, known as TAHSEEL. 

QUDRAT is designed, similar to the American SAT Reasoning Test, to measure critical thinking skills that the student needs for academic success in college.  TAHSEEL, on the other hand, is a three-hour MCQ exam that covers the basic concepts of Math, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and English Language at the secondary school level. 

Currently, the acceptance of the students into KAU Faculty of Engineering is based on a weighed score composed of the three above mentioned Exams as follows:

The following table represents the history of admission standards for freshmen to KAU Faculty of Engineering over the past five years.  The table demonstrates the continuous increase in the average of each of the three scores and reflects the high demand for the Faculty.  Also the minimum acceptance weighed score has continuously increased over the last few years from 86% in 2006 to 88% in 2008 admission cycles.

History of Admission Standards for Freshmen Admissions into KAU Faculty of Engineering

 

 

The KAU Deanship of Admission and Registration administrates the freshmen acceptance process as well as the administrative aspects of student academic activities for the whole university including the Faculty of Engineering.  Nevertheless, the “Academic Affairs and Summer Training Unit (AATU)” of the Faculty of Engineering establishes administrative files containing student personal records for the students admitted to the Faculty of Engineering as soon as they are enrolled in the Faculty.  Additional information, such as student grades, attendance records, specialization, etc, is added to the file during the student’s stay at the Faculty of Engineering.

Students admitted to the Faculty of Engineering start their studies as “Students of the General Program” where they fulfill some of the University and Faculty requirements before specializing in one of the twelve engineering programs.  To apply for specialization the student must (a) complete at least two semesters in the Faculty of Engineering, (b) complete a minimum of 30 hours at the end of the semester during which he applies for specialization, and (c) Pass the first and second levels of the English language courses; ELC 101 and ELC 102.

The students eligible for specialization attend the activities of the Specialization Week organized each semester by the Faculty of Engineering.  During the Specialization Week, all programs are exhibited in booths occupied by some faculty members, technical staff, and senior students.  Fliers of each program are distributed, posters representing student activities and B.Sc. projects are displayed, visits to department laboratories are organized, graduates’ job opportunities are explained, and informal discussions between freshmen and senior students take place.  Freshmen students then fill out a specialization request form in which they select at least three desired majors in decreasing order of interest.  It is then the responsibility of AATU to distribute these students amongst the programs, taking into consideration their favored selection, their GPA, and the requirements of each engineering program.

 

·         Evaluating Student Performance

Student performance is monitored at both the university and department levels.  The Deanship of Admission and Registration places on probation any student whose cumulative grade point average (GPA) falls below 2.0 out of 5.0.  Those students are disqualified from the major if they fail to raise their GPA above 2.0 for three consecutive semesters.  However, upon a recommendation from the Faculty Council, the University Council can approve an exceptional fourth chance to the student to raise his cumulative average.  Students who are completely absent for one semester will be disqualified from the major and will require the approval of the Faculty Council to resume their studies.  Students failing in all registered courses in one semester are temporally disqualified until they supply official proof from the instructors of these courses that they attended at least partially.  Access to the system of “On Demand University Services”, known as ODUS, is denied for disqualified students.  Student academic records and administrative aspects, including online registration, are integral parts of ODUS.

Students are expected to graduate in 10 semesters and will be disqualified from the major if they do not fulfill the graduation requirements within a maximum period of 15 semesters.  In case of force majeure, the University Council can give an exceptional opportunity to the student to fulfill the graduation requirements within a maximum period of 20 semesters.

On the course level, the minimum passing grade is “Pass” (D), which corresponds to 60% and a GPA of 2 out of 5.  If a student, for strong reasons, becomes unable to complete the requirements of a registered course, he can ask for the grade of “Incomplete” (IC).  The case should be presented to the Department Council for approval.  The student who is approved for an IC has to complete the requirements of the course during the following semester; otherwise his grade is automatically changed into the grade of “Fail” (F).  The details of transforming the marks obtained by a student in any course into grades Symbols and grade point average (GPA) are as follows:

 

Although the student is allowed to repeat any course, the new grade does not cancel out the old one.  Old grades are kept in the student’s transcript and are counted in his grade point average.

Department Academic Advisors monitor student progress toward the degree and their grade performance through the Course Status Work Plan which is an integral part of advising materials.  They particularly follow up the students placed on probation and guide their efforts to fulfill the program requirements.

·         Advising Students

The Advising and Monitoring System in the AE Department ensures that each and every student follows the degree plan as prepared by the University Deanship for Admission and Registration.  Upon admission to the department, each student is assigned a faculty member as his academic advisor for the whole period of study in the department.  Normally each academic advisor takes care of 15 to 20 students.

The advisor keeps and updates the advising file that contains the Course Status Work Plan and related documentation for each student.  The advisor has access to the student record on the On Demand University Services (ODUS) system through which he is able to view the transcript of any active student and his time table, as well as the list of the students registered in any course and the list of courses offered.  Although the pre-registration is carried out online by the student, add and drop, course withdrawal, registration for electives, registration for the summer semester, and course substitution require the approval of the academic advisor.  Course substitutions, if needed, are based on identical or superior contents and require the approval of the Department Curriculum Committee as well as the academic advisor.

Although ODUS ensures that the students follow the curriculum of the AE Program, and enforces them to take courses in the proper order and comply with prerequisites, the role of the academic advisor is essential in monitoring the progress of the students placed in probation by the Deanship of Admission and Registration.  As previously stated, the deanship places on probation any student whose cumulative grade point average (GPA) falls below 2.0 or any student who spends 15 semesters in the faculty of Engineering without graduating.  It then becomes the responsibility of the academic advisor to help such students to get out of this critical situation.

AE academic advisors help the students in selecting their B.Sc. projects, venues for summer training, and elective courses which are in-line with the market requirements and their career preferences.  The academic advisor also provides career guidance to graduating students.  During their last semester before graduation the students are required to change their status to graduating student.  This necessitates that the academic advisor signs and approves the student program of study which needs to be authenticated by the department and countersigned by AATU before being delivered by the student to the Registrar of the Faculty of Engineering.  Since the signature of the academic advisor is necessary to approve the student’s program of study before graduation, academic advisors are charged with collecting exit surveys, conducting exit interviews, and collecting information used to update the alumni database.  During exit interview the academic advisor discusses career opportunities and guides the students in their choices.

Career day is another chance where the students and their academic advisors meet with recruitment representatives from the industry.  This day is organized annually by the university in cooperation with private and public sectors of the Saudi industry.  Also large Saudi and multinational companies are usually invited by the faculty of engineering to present themselves and their job opportunities to the students.

·         Transfer Students and Transfer Courses

KAU has in place a process for the evaluation of transfer credits from other universities as well as transfer of credits between different KAU faculties.  The Deanship of Admission and registration arranges the transfer of course credits from other four or five-year institutions.  In many cases this could not be straightforward and often requires additional evaluation by the academic advisor or referral to a faculty member who is more familiar with particular subject matter.

A student registered in an institution granting academic degree equivalent to that of KAU and having a general grade of 70% (or a minimum GPA of 3.0 out of 5.0) may transfer to KAU.  Courses taken at the original institution and completed with a grade C or higher could be considered equivalent to their similar courses at KAU based on course content and allocated credit hours.  The student is exempted from the equivalent KAU courses which will appear in his transcript as courses transferred from other universities without contributing to his cumulative GPA.  Nevertheless, to graduate from the department, the student has to complete at least 50% of the graduation credit hours at KAU.

A student may transfer from a science-track faculty inside KAU to the Faculty of Engineering if he (a) has a minimum GPA of 3.0 out of 5.0, (b) completes one academic year in the original faculty, and (c) completes at least 12 technical credit hours with cumulative average of not less than (C +) including one Math course and one Physics or Chemistry course with a grade C or higher.  Admission of such transferred students depends on the available places.  The grades of the courses taken by a transferred student in his previous faculty are accepted and considered in his new specialization according to the degree requirements.  Courses that are not transferred will remain in the student’s record, but will not count in his cumulative GPA.

Within the Faculty of Engineering a student may change his specialization only once from one program to another if he has not completed 50% of graduation credit hours in his original program.  The transferred student, in this case, should complete all the requirements of the new program.  The credits pertaining to the original program will remain in the record of the student and will contribute to his cumulative GPA.

The AE program manages transferred students only from other engineering programs in the Faculty of Engineering.  Students transferred from other faculties inside KAU are considered as Students of the General Program of the Faculty of Engineering and apply for specialization following the classical specialization process.  Transfer of students from other Aeronautical Engineering Institutions is administered by the Deanship of Admission and Registration.  The role of AE department is to assist the deanship in evaluating transferred courses and credits.  In all cases, transfer to the department occurs rarely.

·         Graduation Requirements

In order to qualify for a BS degree in Aeronautical Engineering, students must successfully complete 155 semester credit hours with an overall GPA of 2.0 out of 5 or better.   The student has to complete 49 required courses and two elective courses with a grade of D or better including 10 weeks of Industrial Summer Training and a Capstone B.Sc. design project as detailed in the AE curriculum requirements described in criterion 5 of the present Self Study Report.