PROFESSIONAL MATTERS

If you have never lived or worked in the Arab world, you will find some aspects of academic life to be the same at AUS as at home, but in other ways the Arab culture, society and economy will influence your lifestyle. For example, a faculty member can expect to prepare course outlines and reading lists, conduct classes, give examinations, advise students, carry out scholarly writing and research, and participate in departmental and university-wide committees. The way these things are done may take on new meaning and present new challenges simply because they will be done in a Middle Eastern environment.

Many of the challenges encountered at AUS are not unlike those at American or European universities, but they are accentuated by local factors affecting a western-style university operating in a Middle Eastern environment. In addition, being a new institution means that programs, policies and procedures are still being formulated and developed. In this complex situation lie pitfalls that require faculty to have a clear sense of their own values and an awareness of the different value systems within which they are functioning.

Propriety requires a more restrained exercise of personal and academic freedom. Good will and common sense on the part of faculty members will facilitate the mission of AUS to bring coeducational, English language based higher education to the Gulf region.

TEACHING

Teaching at AUS is perhaps more challenging, largely because the native language of most students is not English, and because their educational backgrounds differ substantially from that of western students. Although the Intensive English Program and the English Department make concerted efforts to ensure that students are fluent enough in English to benefit from their courses, faculty must still develop sensitivity to the linguistic limitations of their students as English is the second or third language for many of them.

ACADEMIC SCHEDULE

Classes are held Sundays through Thursdays; the weekends are Fridays and Saturday. AUS closes for United Arab Emirates national holidays, Islamic religious holidays, December 25 and New Year's Day. As a result, the only vacation period is usually a break between semesters. The Islamic Holy Month of Ramadan, the time of which varies from year to year, necessitates a shortened workday and altered schedule for the Fall semester.

In 2001, AUS had its first Graduation Ceremony and the Commencement Committee of AUS urge all new faculty to bring their robes, hoods and sashes with them for future commencements.

STUDENTS

AUS students are like students everywhere in many ways: some are highly motivated, knowing in advance the course of study they will pursue, while others are undecided. They have a variety of reasons for choosing AUS: a low student/faculty ratio, major program offerings and proximity to their home communities. Most students will tell you they chose AUS because they and their families are highly enthusiastic and supportive of seeking higher education at a university in the Gulf region which is coeducational and formed on the American model. Being a part of the founding student body is a source of great pride for many students here.

For many of the students, their secondary education emphasized memorization and teacher directed learning. At AUS they must adjust to a new system that emphasizes independent but disciplined thinking, class discussions and quizzes. Because cultural tradition requires young people to show respect for the authority of their elders, including professors, some students may also be more reticent about expressing opinions, asking questions or joining in class discussions.

The Arab family structure also contributes to a different classroom and social atmosphere. Many Arab teenagers grow up in a close and protective family setting and, most have never lived away from home. The normal pattern for young adults, including some of our AUS students, is to live in their parents' home until they marry.

LIBRARY

The AUS library collection is comprised of a variety of materials to support the curriculum and the general information needs of the AUS community. The majority of the library’s holdings are in English. The library also provides group study rooms, quiet study areas, and access to internet-connected workstations. Using the library website, students and faculty can search for library materials from anywhere in the world, as well as access a number of online periodical indexes, full text journals, and magazines.

An important function of the library is the Information Literacy Program. This program is designed to work with students from a beginning level and take them to more advanced levels of library use and its role in providing the best information possible, as their information needs grow. The library works in conjunction with all parts of the university community to provide academic resources for all classes taught at AUS.
The integrated library system, provides the university community with an easy way to search the library collection, reserve items for future use, and renew items that have been checked out. The online catalog is linked to the library’s web page at http://library.aus.edu/. This is also the access point for thousands of subscription-based full text journals and other electronic and Internet resources. This system can be accessed from anywhere in the world.

The library collection has grown to over 55,000 books and 480 current journal subscriptions. E-books, music CDs, DVD’s and videotapes are also available. Faculty can use the automated system to recommend books, or e-mail library personnel to ask questions about library services. The library staff are always ready to assist faculty in support of teaching and research.

COMPUTER SUPPORT SERVICES

The advantage of being a new university is all faculty/staff members have access to complete state-of-the-art computer services. Following are lists of products and services available to faculty:

Network: Fiber to all schools, 100 Mbps Ethernet (switched) internal.

Computer: Full-time faculty receive a laptop (along with a dock station for their office). Laptops in each school at AUS are refreshed on a 3-year cycle. New faculty receive the current laptop standard for their school, so specifications will vary according to what stage the school is at within its cycle. Software generally available includes MS XP Pro, MS Office 2007 (Word, Excel, Power Point, and Access), MS Front Page, Maple, Oracle, Adobe Creative Suite, SPSS and Banner.

Printer: Faculty have access to print to a variety of networked black & white and color printers.

In addition, each faculty member has an individual e-mail address with a 100MB limit. AUS is using IE 5-6 & MS Outlook, and faculty has full access to the Internet both in the office and in their housing units. Housing units have multiple data and telephone points.

A special secure folder (home folder) for personal storage is available for all faculty/staff members. This secure folder is daily backed up automatically by the IT Department and is accessible via the AUS LAN, as well as remotely while off campus.

IT is responsible for providing and maintaining IT related services, including the telecommunications, networking, internet and email accounts, network operating system accounts and PC and Mac software and/or hardware support.

• Faculty members get assistance on site from their Lab Technicians for their office/lab computers or software.
• Administrative staff members can get assistance on site from Help Desk Engineers for their office computers or software.

For further details about the AUS IT Department log on to the AUS Website at http://www.aus.edu/admin/it/index.php and http://itdfaq.aus.edu/faq