About the Academic Council

Since its inception in the academic year of 1975, The Academic Council of King Saud University is considered one of the oldest academic councils of the Saudi Universities. Since that date, it performs its tasks as required, But still there is an urgent need for further development and superiority.

The Academic Council deals with many issues and tasks included in the Higher Education System, (Article No. 28 – 31) mentioned below. The most important tasks are to decide and recommend the academic hiring and promotion decisions, academic publishing, academic full-time, scientific courses attendance, using part-time professors and other relating issues.

The council works are summarized in receiving the topics assigned by the systems of the University colleges or baptisms and units within and outside the University, and then referring them to the standing committees of the council for consideration and recommendation in order to be submitted to the Academic Council.

The academic council has the following standing committees:-

1)     The standing committee of employment.

2)     The standing committee of promotion.

3)     The standing committee of the academic publishing.

4)     The standing committee of the scientific research.

5)     The standing committee of research and development.

The secretariat of the academic council shall schedule the recommendations of the committees and other issues, and then submit them to the academic council to make the appropriate decisions and recommendations. After that, each minute of the council meetings minutes shall be approved by the University Director in order to start implement the taken decisions or escalate the given recommendations to the University Council.

The Academic Council Regulations

The twenty-eighth Article:

Each University shall make an academic council which will oversee the academic affairs of the faculty and the affairs of research, studies and publishing. The mentioned council, in particular, shall perform the following tasks:

1)     To recommend hiring the faculty members of the university.

2)     To decide the issues relating to the academic promotions of the faculty members in the university, as per the rules adopted by the higher education council.

3)     To encourage the scientific research, compilation, translation and publishing. And in order to achieve such goal, it will take the following actions:

A)   To establish rules to encourage the development of scientific researches.

B)    To propose establishing the scientific researches centers.

C)    To coordinate between the scientific researches centers as well as to develop the general plan of them.

D)   To arrange and organize the relationship between the researches centers outside the University.

E)    To identify the encouraging and discretionary rewards for the scientific achievements as well as the adjudication and payment orders.

F)    To publish the researches, publications and scientific papers seen to be appropriate to be published.

G)   To recommend issuing the scientific journals.

H)   To recommend establishing the scientific associations and museums as well as the coordination among them.

I)      Adoption of the matters referred to it including the textbooks and theses that need to be reviewed.

4)     To evaluate the academic certificates submitted by the Saudi faculty members.

5)     To consider the matters referred by the University Council.

The twenty-ninth Article

The academic council consists of the following members:

1)     University Vice dean of the Post Studies and scientific researches- Chairman.

2)     One member of the faculty members of each college or institute, with the degree of Associate Professor, at least, those shall be appointed by a decision issued from the University Council, based on the nomination of the college or institute council and the approval of the university rector. The University Council may issue a decision to involve additional members, engaged in research and scientific issues, in the council, provided that not to be more than half of the total members. All members shall be appointed for the one time renewable period of two years. The council may establish standing or temporary committees out of its members in order to study the matters assigned on them.

The thirtieth Article

The academic council shall meet once a month at least, upon the invitation of the Chairman. The chairman may invite the council to the meeting if necessary or if he receives a written request from one third of the members requesting to held a meeting or based on the request of the university rector who may request the adding any matter seen to be added in the agenda. The University rector can be the meeting chairman if he attends the meeting, and his meeting will not be valid unless being attended at least by two-thirds of the members.

The thirty first Article

The resolutions of the academic council shall be taken by the absolute majority of attended votes. If the votes are equal, the side of the chairman will be preferred. The resolutions shall be in force unless there is an objection from the University Director within fifteen days from the date of submitting them to him. If he has objection, the resolutions together with his point of view should be returned to the academic council to restudy them again. If the council insists on its point of view and resolutions, the matter should be referred to the University Council which will be considered in ordinary or extraordinary meeting. The University Council in such case will approve, modify or cancel such resolutions, and its decision will be final.