JEDDAH: King Abdul Aziz University is to host on Jan. 29 and 30 the first meeting of the International Academic Advisory Committee, a body of 20 academics from around the world to help the university raise its teaching and research standards. The committee consists of educational experts from Saudi Arabia, Japan, China, Singapore, Turkey, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, Finland and the United States of America, and, according to university president Osama Al-Tayyeb, it will help KAU improve its academic standards. “The university has brought in these experts to take strategic decisions and guide students to the right majors to match opportunities in the job market,” he said. The professors on the committee, chosen for their experience in education development, will also provide an advisory service on programs and academic research, support inventions, and help the university set up programs and alliances with international companies and educational bodies. “The diversity of KAU's academics will widen discussion and the exchange of experience which will definitely improve academic standards at the university,” he said. Al-Tayyeb said Saturday that a prize of SR500,000 would be given to “any member of the university's staff who publishes academic research in recognized international journals”. “The university looks from time to time to increase the number of research papers published in recognized international publications by its staff,” he said, explaining the move. “This is not to improve the university's ranking, but to translate the efforts of its staff to serve society both regionally and internationally.”
