Effat University, Psychology Department Strategic Plan 2022-2027

Psychology Department Strategic Plan 2022-2027

I. Department Chair's Message

“Psychology is about analyzing the past in order to look forward to a brighter future. If we all focus on innovating our field, our future conversations will revolve less around problems, and more on solutions”, said Nicholas Covino, president of the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology (renamed William James College in 2015).

The proclamation of Nicholas could not be more pertinent than at the present times vis-à-vis the focus on innovation, primarily because of the enormous challenges humanity faced during COVID-19 Pandemic, including mental health. To keep pace with the dramatically shifting demands, it was imperative to make a paradigm shift in our approach, strategy and delivery of psychology education at Effat University.

The Department of Psychology at Effat University envisions to prepare students for versatile professional roles, bound for reforming the mental health and psychological wellbeing of individuals, communities, and organizations, through offering the evidence-based knowledge and understanding of human behavior, mind and emotions, supplemented with the relevant state-of-the-art technology. The department aims to enhance collaboration with local and international universities, industry and organizations.to create and integrate innovative technology embedded within traditional psychology educational theories, pedagogies and practices.

To continue to expand its landscape in the psychology education sector, and to meet the rising need of mental health professionals in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere, the Department of Psychology plans to offer an international standard master’s degree in clinical psychology. One of the unique features of the soon to be launched master’s degree will be integration of technology into mental health education to prepare future clinical psychologists and therapist trained and proficient in the ‘digitalized’ mental health services like telemental health, telepsychology, e-therapy, cyber-counseling, etc. To augment this futuristic goal, the Department aims to establish state-of-the art laboratories equipped with hard and software like AR/VR, GSR, biofeedback systems, etc.

To enhance our students and faculty experiences, the Department plans to continue and expand the international collaborations through student exchange programs, study a semester abroad, professional development, its international conference and hosting international students and faculty. The Department will ensure maintaining its full national reaccreditation and will work with the University and College on attaining international accreditation by the end of the strategic plan. The Department also plans to increase its visibility nationally and internationally.

II. Department Vision, Mission, and Goals

Mission

The Psychology Program graduates responsible, caring, and compassionate future Psychology professionals through a world class research and community service-based curriculum that promotes understanding and respect of the complexity and diversity of human mind and behavior nationally and internationally.

Vision

The Psychology Program aspires to be among the leading programs at the national and international levels in education, research and training. It aims to promote individual and community welfare by focusing on the holistic well-being of humanity.

Goals

Goal 1. Ensure the Psychology Department’s achievement of its mission through offering a world class research and community service based curriculum and actively contributing to the fulfilment of the nation’s 2030 vision.

Goal 2. Create a positive and productive work environment through efficient, transparent and inspiring leadership; maintain national accreditation and obtain international accreditation.

Goal 3. Ensure academic excellence by providing the most updated knowledge and learning resources and services.

Goal 4. Attract promising students, and continue graduating responsible and compassionate professionals who carry on the legacy of Queen Effat.

Goal 5. Recruit and retain skilled and researchoriented faculty and continuously develop their professional skills.

Goal 6. Provide up-to-date software and information technology; upgrade PSY labs and

other facilities through sufficient budgeting, and optimize their use.

Goal 7. Encourage faculty and students to produce scholarly research output and activities aligned to the needs of local and global communities.

Goal 8. Enhance the Psychology Department’s relations and interactions with the national and international community through collaborative ventures.

III. Summary of Market Scan Findings

• IPSOS conducted an in-depth market research on the KSA Education market in December 2021 with the following objectives to develop a sound strategic plan for Effat University (EU):

1. Macroeconomic and Employment Landscape – Economic profile of KSA and its key industries, current and future demand of programs of KSA

2. POV - Employers – Interviewing potential employers within institutions in the target segment to understand the expectations from candidates and programs

3. POV – Students & Parents –Understanding the perceptions and attitudes of the current students and potential students and their parents, towards universities and programs

• To achieve the objective, IPSOS conducted a

comprehensive desk research, quantitative survey with 875+ stakeholders (employers (50), current students (154), potential students (61) and parents (112) of the potential students), backed up by qualitative research for deeper insights.

• Here are the key findings from the research:

• 80% of the population is employed by private companies while 20% are in government services.

• 56% of the employed population is at the bachelor’s or equivalent level.

• Human Capital Development Program (HCDP) has set a goal to raise the percentage of higher education graduates in employment within six months of graduation from 4.5% in 2019 to 20% in 2025.

• It is clear from the above chart that employers from many sectors would be seeking graduates from Psychology, especially the education sector (10%) and Human Health and social work activities (7%).

• The study also concludes that the Saudi Government will focus on the Saudization of all education jobs at national and international schools over the next three years. This move is expected to create around 28,000 new jobs for Saudi nationals. This implies that there will be an increasing need for school counselors and teachers, and college and university professors, and our Psychology Program prepares students for school level teaching, and for admission in higher education. Both aim at fulfilling these upcoming country needs.

POV (Point of View) - Employer

The market study shows that most industries have a positive outlook after the pandemic except Hospitality, Retail and F&B. For example, Educational institutions and Health care are two sectors that have a 100% positive outlook. This means that there will always be demand for teachers and mental health workers, two areas the ET and PSY Departments can contribute to.

Macroeconomic and Employment Landscape

• While oil remains the major export product for Saudi Arabia, its dominance of the total export share for the country has declined over the past few years as shown in the graph below:

• Despite a decline in overall population share, female share of total workforce has increased from 11% in 1990 to 16% in 2020.

• Wholesale and retail sector is the largest employer followed by public administration and defense as indicated in the chart below:

This module captures the willingness and likelihood of employers in KSA to hire graduates of Effat University. The findings were as follows:

• Driven by Saudization, employers across sectors noted that entry level hiring is likely to grow more than 5% in the next 3 to 5 years. 6 -10% of the employees are at entry level/fresh graduates. Saudization is expected to bring about 7.6%-12.5% growth in recruiting entry level/fresh graduate candidates.

• 70% of the employers surveyed also stated when it comes to recruiting candidates for entry level jobs, the University the candidate graduated from is the most important parameter.

• The key parameters used by employers to evaluate a university are the ‘Reputation’ of the university, its ‘Partnership with International Universities’, ‘Regional Ranking’ & ‘Past Experience’ with the students from the same university. Below is the snapshot of the universities considered as most reputed among employers:

% of the employers indicated the university name as most reputed (Unaided resoponses)

% of the employers indicated the university name as most reputed (Unaided resoponses)

• Effat University’s reputation stands tall amongst the private universities, with 56% of the employers considering EU as one of the most reputed universities.

• 100% of the employers in Jeddah and Makkah are aware of Effat University, followed by 60% in Riyadh, while the awareness is lower in other regions of KSA.

• 70% of the employers that are aware of EU are inclined to recruit candidates from EU in the coming years. EU is currently ranked as 61 – 70 in QS Arab Regional Ranking 2022, moved up from 101 – 110 ranking in 2019, tracing an upward trajectory.

• Majority of the employers state that they consider the candidates are technically sound, with very good communication skills, in addition to holding a recognized internationally accredited degree. The table below depicts the key skills preferred by the employers in order to hire candidates:

% of the employers indicated the university name as most reputed (Unaided resoponses)

• The graph above shows that 58% of employers seek graduates from the Liberal Arts. All Effat University undergraduate programs including Psychology Program have compulsory 42 credits of General Education Program rooted in the Liberal Arts, indicating that employers will be looking for our graduates in the coming years.

• The combined share of business, administration and law; health and welfare course enrollments among total higher education enrollments in Saudi Arabia increased from 45% in 2013 to 51% in 2019.

• Psychology Department has international and national academic partnerships. Psychology Program has the long term successful international academic partnership with the Carnegie Melon University (CMU) of USA, and has signed many agreements over the years with CMU. Additionally, department has external benchmarking agreement with the Princess Noura Bint Abdurehman University (PNU), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The Psychology Department has also got approval for the establishment of a Chapter of the International Honor Society in Psychology Psi Chi.

• 100% of the employers in Jeddah and Makkah are aware of Effat University, followed by 60% in Riyadh, while the awareness is lower in other regions of KSA.

• 70% of the employers that are aware of EU are inclined to recruit candidates from EU in the coming years.

• While the employers (~10) that are likely to recruit from Effat in the coming years are content with the positive reputation of the university, technical skills of the students, positive relationship with EU, etc., they have suggested that the candidates from EU would have a scope to work on their confidence level and interpersonal/presentation skills.

• 75% of the employers would like to receive direct communication from EU about their updated curriculum to the industry needs and newsletters about their students’ achievements which will increase their likelihood of hiring from the university.

• There is high demand across individual programs offered by Effat College of Engineering. Employers also noted the research done on Smart Building and Virtual Reality by EU.

• Undergraduate and postgraduate programs in finance and marketing, along with undergraduate in psychology are a few other popular programs amongst the employers.

• Other programs/subjects suggested by employers that are likely to be in demand in the coming years are as follows:

• While the employers (~10) that are likely to recruit from Effat in the coming years are content with the positive reputation of the university, technical skills of the students, positive relationship with EU, etc., they have suggested that the candidates from EU would have a scope to work on their confidence level and interpersonal/presentation skills.

• 75% of the employers would like to receive direct communication from EU about their updated curriculum to the industry needs and newsletters about their students’ achievements which will increase their likelihood of hiring from the university.

• The psychology is a popular program amongst the employers.

• Graduates from Effat College of Humanities show great technical knowledge, communication skills, interpersonal skills, problem-solving skills and an awareness on world matters, which are amongst the most important characteristics employers are looking for.

• The ET and PSY programs both require the completion of internships (180 hrs and 360 hrs, respectively. 62% of employers consider this an important skill in new employees.

• It is worth noting that students’ enrollment in the Ambassador Program and their participation in campus-wide activities and clubs, in addition to volunteering in events give them the practical exposure 70% of employers are looking for and the extra-curricular activities 56% of employers are looking for.

• Other programs/subjects suggested by employers that are likely to be in demand in the coming years are as follows:

% of the employers indicated the university name as most reputed (Unaided resoponses)

• The combined share of business, administration and law; health and welfare course enrollments among total higher education enrollments in Saudi Arabia increased from 45% in 2013 to 51% in 2019.

• EU is currently ranked as 61 – 70 in QS Arab Regional Ranking 2022, moved up from 101 – 110 ranking in 2019, tracing an upward trajectory.

• EU has established strong partnerships with 15 global universities including Duke University, Georgetown University, Syracuse University, University of Miami, Carnegie Mellon University, New York University, and Auburn University for programs ranging from engineering to business management, on par with other regional leading universities.

POV (Point of View)– Students & Parents

• A student’s journey to choosing a university is described as follows:

Current Student

• Location, preferred subjects and reputation are the key parameters for evaluating among the universities.

• Even though the EU placement test (English & Math) are considered as moderately difficult, overall admission process at EU was seen as smooth.

• The Market study shows that there is a high demand for Psychology. The demand from the market is likely to come from the following sectors: Education & Research, Healthcare, Hospitality and Entrepreneurship. There will also be high demand for continuous courses especially, English language and test preparation.

• The table below shows that Clinical Psychology is among the popular programs amongst students (9%).

Undergraduate Programs Postgraduate Programs

Effat College of Architecture & Design - BSc Arcchitecture 14% Effat College of Business - BSc Finance - Finance 4%

Effat College of Business - BSc Marketing 11% Effat College of Humanities - BSc Translation and Interpreting 2%

Effat College of Engineering - BSc Computer Science 11%

Effat College of Humanities - BSc PsychologyClinicalPsychology 9%

Effat College of Business - BSc Finance 6%

Effat College of Engineering - BSc Elecctrical & Computer 6%

Effat College of Humanities - BSc English & Translation 5%

Effat College of Business - BSc Supply Chain Management 5% Effat College of Humanities - BSc English & Translation

• Before deciding on EU, current students planned on visiting the university’s official website, seek advice from their families and visiting the university’s campus as shown in the table below:

• According to current students, offering scholarships, the availability of preferred programs and the quality of education are the reasons behind choosing EU as shown in the table below:

• According to current students, marketing, business administration and psychology are the graduation streams of choice for higher or further education as shown below:

• After considering the overall experience as a student at EU, 6 in 10 students are satisfied with the institution. This is depicted by the table below:

• 2 in 10 students are highly likely to continue their higher education with EU. According to current students, law program is the top program EU could consider. Increasing the number of teaching staff is the top improvement area according to current students as depicted by the chart below:

• Top reasons behind considering Effat University by postgraduate students are having affordable fees, quality of education and the alumni network. When comparing the results with the overall universities, affordable fee, alumni network, international affiliations and the faculty’s profile are reasons that are significantly higher as shown in the table below:

Potential UG Students

• Quality of education, reputation of the university and the career opportunities are the top reasons high school students consider Effat University. When comparing results with the overall universities, availability of dorms, international affiliations and ties with foreign universities are significantly higher for Effat University as shown in the chart below:

• Internet and social media as well as the television are the types of media most viewed by potential postgraduates. Instagram and Twitter are the social media platforms accessed regularly as depicted in the charts below:

• Internet and social media are the types of media most viewed by high school student. Instagram, Twitter and Facebook are the social media platforms accessed regularly as shown in the charts below:

IV. Strategic Plan Strategic Area 1: Mission, Vision, and Strategic Planning

Objective 1: Implement PSY Strategic Plan

Restructure PSY Department unit

Update leadership roles

Review and revise reporting lines

Evaluate leadership performance

Actions by Initiatives

Implement Annual Operational Plan

• Formulate and set the 5-year strategic plan.

• Develop and implement the annual operational plan.

• Assess and report on the achievement of the annual operational plan for all units every Fall and Spring semester.

• Provide recommendation and improve the operational plan of the following year.

Objective 2: Appraise PSY Mission Objective and Success

Percentage of operational steps completed

Percentage of alignment between the responsibilities and tasks in leadership role description to the actual implementation.

Percentage of operational steps completed

Percentage of performance achieved by leaderships

Actions by Initiatives

Restructure PSY Units

Actions by Initiatives

Evaluate the Achievement of PSY Mission Statement

• Identify the relevant KPIs that best represent the Mission components.

• Evaluate and report on the related KPIs and assess the overall achievement of the Mission.

• Provide recommendation and improvement plans where necessary.

V. Strategic Area 2: Governance, Leadership & Management

Objective 1: Revise Organizational Structure

FACULTY

DEPT CHAIR

FACULTY

FACULTY

• Review the current Psychology Department structure and number of Departmental units by benchmarking with other universities of similar size and age to recommend updates at all levels.

• Monitor the effectiveness of the organizational structure based on a set of criteria and make updates if needed.

• Conduct an interim comprehensive review of organizational changes and make updates, as necessary.

• Conduct a comprehensive review of Department structure by the end of the planning period in preparation for the next 5-year strategic plan.

Update Leadership Roles

• Evaluate leadership roles and responsibilities by revising and updating the specific descriptions of these roles of leaders at different levels (Department Chair, Faculty & Staff).

• Set specific authorities, responsibilities, and tasks for each role based on the College Charter and the Ministry bylaws.

• Review the leadership succession plan regularly.

• Ensure the effective and efficient distribution of the responsibilities of academic and administrative leaders to achieve harmony among the different units.

• Monitor and evaluate the adherence of leaders to the description of their leadership roles and tasks annually and be ready to adjust the description based on work needs.

• Review the leadership roles and their tasks by the end of the third year of the strategic plan and make changes as needed.

• Conduct a comprehensive review of leadership roles by the end of 2026-2027 in preparation for the next 5-year strategic plan.

Review and Revise Reporting Lines

• Revise Department reporting system and reporting lines to ensure a clear and smooth flow of information from bottom-up and top-down among academic and administrative units to achieve cooperative teamwork environment.

• Update efficient reporting templates used for producing semester reports for all academic and administrative units for Falls and Springs.

• Agree on the reporting lines and templates with all units.

• Pilot the reporting system in Fall and Spring 2022-2023 to adjust as needed for use in subsequent semesters.

• Conduct an interim review of the reporting system by the third year of the strategic plan and adjust the reporting system and reporting lines, as necessary.

• Conduct a comprehensive review of the reporting system and reporting templates in preparation for the next 5-year strategic plan.

Evaluate Leadership Performance

• Assess how far PSY Department Chair and faculty have managed to achieve the department’s annual objectives and help them set their new objectives for the subsequent year for the department as part of oversight and accountability of PSY Department governance system.

• Conduct an interim review by revising the tools for leadership assessment and make changes as needed.

• Conduct a final comprehensive review of leadership assessment tools in preparation for the following 5-year strategic plan.

Objective 2: Restructure PSY Responsibilities

• Monitor the initiatives and projects carried out by the departmental committees and give a final report on their performance in Spring each year.

• Conduct a comprehensive review of the committees to give final assessment of their work and recommend changes for the subsequent 5-year strategic plan accordingly.

Review and Evaluate PSY Committees

• Evaluate the efficiency of current Department committees based on a set criterion and recommend improvements and updates of their mandate, structure and/or function, as necessary.

• Update and implement Departmental committees based on the evaluation conducted in Fall 2022-2023.

• Monitor the initiatives and projects carried out by Departmental committees and give a final report on their performance in Spring each year.

• Conduct a comprehensive review of current Dep. committees to give final assessment of their work and recommend changes for the subsequent 5-year strategic plan accordingly.

Objective 4: Attain and Maintain Program Recognition

Actions by Initiatives

Establish New PSY Strategic Roles & Develop Role Descriptions

• Update the Psychology Departmental strategic roles at the level of Department and specify their authorities, responsibilities, and tasks taking into consideration that they have both academic and technical skills to achieve effective governance.

• Update the Governance Manual to include the updated strategic roles at the departmental level and the job descriptions/ authorities, responsibilities and tasks.

• Evaluate the Governance Manual that includes the administrative and organizational flowcharts and job authorities, responsibilities and tasks by the end of the third year of the strategic plan to make changes, as necessary.

• Conduct a comprehensive review of strategic roles at the department level and their descriptions to make organizational changes by the end of the planning period in preparation for the next 5-year strategic plan.

Evaluate the performance of individuals carrying the new strategic roles:

• Evaluate individuals carrying out new strategic roles based on an agreed criterion (e.g., competence and skills) for evaluation every Spring.

Actions by Initiatives

Obtain and Maintain Program National Accreditation

• Establish a schedule for renewing the national accreditation for the program accredited over the 5 years.

• Monitor, manage, and coordinate national accreditation in preparation or in progress with the institution and programs starting Fall 2022 and over all subsequent semesters.

• Implement an automated system that documents the required excellence level of accredited University programs.

Objective 3: Streamline Committee Structures

Actions by Initiatives

• Give recommendations for improvement to the concerned individuals to improve their performance for implementation in the following year. Review and

• Evaluate the efficiency of current standing committees based on a set criterion and recommend improvements and updates of their mandate, structure and/or function, as necessary.

• Conduct an interim review of the effectiveness of QA oversight processes in steering national accreditations and recommend improvements and changes, as necessary.

• Conduct a final review of the effectiveness of QA oversight of national accreditation and recommend improvements for the next 5-year strategic plan.

Obtain and Maintain Institutional and Program International Accreditation

• Review, and revise, as necessary, the current approach to international accreditation.

• Set a schedule for supporting the university in achieving international accreditation from NECHE over the 5-year planning period.

• Set a schedule for monitoring and supporting program in maintaining/renewing/acquiring currently achieved international accreditations over the 5-year planning period.

• Set a plan for applying for other professional accreditations for the program in coordination of college Dean’s supervision.

• Conduct an interim review of the effectiveness of QA oversight processes in steering international accreditation and recommend improvements and changes, as necessary.

• Conduct a final review of the effectiveness of QA oversight of international accreditation by the end of the planning period and recommend improvements for the next 5-year strategic plan.

Attain and Maintain Subject Ranking

• Establish protocols for improving institutional and subject ranking based on monitoring and analyzing benchmarking data of the top ranked universities nationally and internationally to develop a plan to acquire the targeted institutional and subject rankings over the remaining 5-year planning period.

• Monitor institutional and subject ranking achieved annually and set plans for improvement.

• Conduct an interim review of the protocols for institutional and subject ranking and revise, as necessary.

• Conduct a final assessment of the achievements of institutional and subject rankings by the end of the planning period and provide recommendations for improvement for the next 5-year strategic plan accordingly.

Conduct Benchmarking Data Analysis Annually

• Review, and revise, as necessary, policies and procedures for benchmarking.

• Supervise data collection and analysis of benchmarking data annually.

• Make use of the benchmarking data to reinforce and streamline the KPI management process by introducing a sound KPI framework.

• Automate the KPI management process by continually raising the benchmarks every subsequent year.

• Review the action plan for benchmarking to introduce improvements as required annually.

Objective 5: Monitor the Effectiveness of the Governance System

Initiative 2022-2027

Ensure the compliance of PSY governing bodies, bylaws, and policies and procedures with relevant authorities (e.g., MoE)

Ensure the dissemination of circulations and decisions made by all governing bodies

KPIs Responsibility 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026

Percentage of adherence of the governing bodies, bylaws and policies and procedures to relevant authorities (e.g., MoE)

Percentage of dissemination of circulations and decisions &

Percentage of stakeholders’ awareness of disseminated circulations and decisions.

LEAD: DEAN OTHERS: DEPT CHAIRS/FACULTY

LEAD: DEAN OTHERS: DEPT CHAIRS/FACULTY

Ensure the Dissemination of Circulations and Decisions made by all Governing Bodies

• Review, and revise, as necessary, policies and procedures for internal and external dissemination of PSY decisions.

• Monitor dissemination of relevant information to stakeholders and set and implement actions for improvement as necessary every semester.

• Evaluate the levels of awareness by stakeholders of disseminated circulations and decisions and set improvements accordingly.

• Conduct an interim review of the effectiveness of policies and procedures for dissemination of PSY decisions and circulations and introduce improvements as needed.

• Conduct a final review of the effectiveness of policies and procedures for dissemination of PSY circulations and decisions and circulations by Spring 2027 in preparation for the next 5-year strategic planning cycle.

Ensure that PSY Members follow Effat Ethical Conduct

• Review, and revise, as necessary, protocols for monitoring ethical conduct across PSY.

• Monitor and report on the violations of ethical conduct in line with the approved protocols and take actions for improvement as necessary every semester.

• Conduct an interim review of the effectiveness of ethical protocols followed over the previous planning period and revise, as necessary.

• Conduct a final review of the effectiveness of ethical protocols over the planning period and revise, as necessary.

Risk Management

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk:

Topic

Enhanced

Develop and Maintain Professional Accreditations

Stringent requirements to obtain the accreditations

Task force to be established to oversee the execution of all operational steps

VI. Strategic Area 3: Teaching & Learning

Ensure that PSY members follow Effat Ethical Conduct

Actions by Initiatives

Percentage of violations of the code of ethical conduct (Tarbawyyat).

LEAD: DEAN OTHERS: DEPT CHAIRS/FACULTY Ensure the Compliance of the Governing Bodies, Bylaws, and Policies and Procedures with Relevant Authorities (e.g., MoE)

• Review, and revise, as necessary, the governance system, bylaws and policies and procedures for ensuring their compliance with regulatory authorities.

• Monitor compliance activities with regulatory authorities based on the agreed criteria and set action for improvement as necessary every semester.

• Evaluate the effectiveness of the governing bodies

• Conduct an interim review of the effectiveness of the governing body, bylaw, policies and procedures for ensuring compliance with regulatory authorities by the third year of the planning period and revise, as necessary.

• Conduct a final review of the effectiveness of policies and procedures for ensuring compliance with regulatory authorities over the whole planning period and revise as necessary for the next 5-year strategic planning cycl

Objective 1: Redevelop the Academic Portfolio

Review and reassess the current academic portfolio

Develop new academic programs

Monitor and respond to national policy on international HE regarding academic offering

Percentage of all programs reviewed

Percentage of nominated programs revised

Number of new programs developed - (BSC, MS, PhD, Minors, DM, DD, Ass Degree, Diploma, Certificate)

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY

Percentage of operational steps completed LEAD: DEPT CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY

Proportion of existing partnerships (At least 1/ program)

Review existing, and identify new, international educational partnership opportunities (DDs, Minors)

Actions by Initiatives

Review and Reassess the Current Academic Portfolio

Degree of fulfillment of the educational partnership agreements

Number of international DDs and Minors introduced

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY.

The table below shows the competition between the programs offered by Effat College of Humanities and other institutions at the undergraduate level:

• Continue overseeing working parties at PSY Department levels to follow up on the Program Review schedule.

• Ensure the program conducts regular assessment processes to continually improve the curriculum, through a feedback system for all teaching faculty.

• Deploy an assessment committee that reviews the reports periodically and provides feedback to the respective department to re-assess the existing academic programs.

• Benchmark the academic programs with the leading national and international universities to review and assess the programs.

Develop New Academic Programs

• Assess the current portfolio strengths and weaknesses, to strengthen the existing portfolio and incorporate new programs to expand the current portfolio. We recommend a framework that incorporates competitors’ strength, current students’ ratings, and sector outlook to determine if the potential course is an opportunity or not.

• Assess the current portfolio strengths and weaknesses, to strengthen the existing portfolio and incorporate new programs to expand the current portfolio. Based on the graph below, show that enrollment in Health and Welfare and Arts and Humanities make 29% of enrollment in Higher Education.

Accordingly, we recommend the following framework to support future planning including the current ECoH programs appraisal:

Based on the market gaps and Psychology Program capabilities, the following decision-making academic program portfolio matrix with actionable outcomes to each scenario is recommended:

• There exists an opportunity for more enrolments through a fierce media campaign and recruitment efforts. Based on the above outlook, the Department has to monitor any updates in HE bylaws which can help program become more attractive like creating exit points or including minors. Since there is an increased interest in Psychology, the College can study developing a master program in Clinical Psychology, which can be offered in the next strategic plan.

• Program feasibility studies to be conducted per academic year

Monitor and Respond to National Policy on International HE Regarding Academic Offering

• Monitor developments of national policies on internationalization in higher education.

• Monitor internationalization activities in other Saudi higher education institutions.

• Monitor international higher education institutions’ activities in the Kingdom.

• Develop response policies and activities considering changing environment

Review Existing, and Identify New, International Educational Partnership Opportunities (DDs, Minors)

• Review current partners

• Evaluate effectiveness

• Recommend renewing contract or identifying new partners

• Develop and offer joint programs with international partner

Objective 2: Establish E-Learning Provision

Actions by Initiatives

Review and Revise e-learning Facilities and Resources

• Continue activities, finalize proposals and submit to Teaching and Learning Committee for approval.

• Invest in an adequate e-learning platform.

• Review the adequacy of the e-learning facilities and resources through satisfaction rate of the stakeholders (Faculty, students).

Develop and Operate e-learning Strategy

• Develop e-learning programs per college

• Offer the programs as per the approved schedule

• Assess the successful implementation of the offered e-learning programs by assessing:

a. Number of students registered compared to the projection,

b.Satisfaction rates of Faculty

c. Satisfaction rate of students

Objective 3: Develop and Extend Novel Pedagogies

Initiative 2022-2027

Increase integration of project-based learning

Strengthen Research/Teaching nexus in educational delivery

Review, revise and extend cocurricular education and the Effat Ambassador Program

Actions by Initiatives

2022 2023 2024 2025 2026

KPIs Responsibility

Proportion of courses involving project-based learning

Proportion of courses embedding the research/teaching nexus leading to publication (With Research Publication)

Percentage of operational steps completed

Increase Integration of Project-based Learning

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR

OTHERS: FACULTY

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR

OTHERS: FACULTY

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR

OTHERS: FACULTY

• Emphasize project and problem-based learning, helping students learn by constructing solutions to real-life problems through three main characteristics that are central to the twenty-first century pedagogy:

a. Problem statements are tied to curriculum and learning goals of the university.

b Focus on the central concepts or principles of topics.

c. Projects are based on real-world problems and are presented in the form of case studies.

Strengthen Research/Teaching Nexus in Educational Delivery

• Foster the concept of learning beyond classrooms using technology to gain a deeper understanding of complex ideas and ability to work in global teams to generate new ideas and theories.

• Lead the students to publish their work in journal/conferences.

Review, Revise and Extend Co-curricular Education and the Effat Ambassador Program

• Deploy teaching metacognitive skills, that will help the students to plan, monitor and evaluate one’s own understanding and performance, thereby allowing them to reflect on their own critical awareness about how they think and learn, enhancing their personality.

• Conduct Focus group to revise the co- and extracurricular activities.

• Update the co- extra-curricular activities.

• Implement the program.

• Assess the successful implementation of the program through EGC achievement and students’ satisfaction of the EAP.

Objective 4: Embed Employability in Teaching and Learning

Initiative

Integrate service learning within all programs

2022-2027

2022 2023 2024 2025 2026

KPIs Responsibility

Percentage of programs that integrate service learning

1- Number of programs aligned (NQF, KSA Job Classification)

2- Percentage of students acquiring Professional and training Certificates

3- Students’ performance in professional and/or national examinations *** (SR 1.1.1) (KPI-P-06)

Objective 5: Ensure Academic Excellence

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR

OTHERS: FACULTY

Align PLOs with market needs

4- Graduate employability and enrolment in post graduate programs ** (KPI-I-05)(KPI_P-07)

(KPI-PG-07) - (Annually)NationalInternational and within 6 months)”

5- Employer evaluation of the institution graduate proficiency ** (KPI-I-08)(KPI-P-09)(KPI-PG-08)

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR

OTHERS: FACULTY

Deploy professional experts in teaching

Provide on-campus and off- campus field experiences

Integrate state-of-the art technology within the program

Actions by Initiatives

Integrate Service Learning within all Programs

Proportion of courses professional experts deployed for teaching

Proportion of programs with on-campus and off-campus field experience

Percentage of programs that utilize state-of-the-art technology

• Identify the courses that can be conducted with Service-Learning component.

• Discuss at the beginning of the semester the projects and companies to collaborate with.

• Plan for the workshop with the company to launch the project.

• Present the outcomes.

• Assess the successful implementation through companies and students’ satisfactions.

Align PLOs with Market Needs

• Establish and activate PSY Committee on Academic Portfolio (CAP).

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR

OTHERS: FACULTY

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY

Attain the Effat Graduate Characteristics

Attain the English Level proficiency

Actions by Initiatives

Monitor Academic Excellence

Average number of students in the class (KPI-P-08)

Students’ evaluation of quality of learning experience in the programs (PES) ** (KPI-I-03; KPI-P-02; KPI-PG-02)

Evaluation of Faculty members to the learning Environment (FSS) *** SR 1.2.3

Grade distribution (% [A+, A] and % [D+, D, F] is less than 20%).

GPA distribution (>= 2) of the graduates and continuing students % of students progressed out of the risk status at all levels (UG & G).

First-year students retention rate (Undergraduate) ** (KPI-I-04; KPI-P-05)

Completion of Graduation rate for Undergraduate/graduate Students in the specified period ** (KPI-I-06 & KPI-P-04; KPI-PG-06)

Students’ evaluation of the quality of the courses on five-point scale. (+Participation rate). ** (KPI-P-03 & KPI-PG-03)

Achievement of Program learning outcomes

% of students achieving the four Effat Graduate Characteristics annually

% of attainment of requested English level by Effat University students

• Closely monitor every student’s scores obtained in their respective programs.

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR

OTHERS: FACULTY

• Continue Overseeing working parties at college and departmental levels to follow up on the Program Review schedule.

• Finalize new proposals to Curriculum Committee for approval if any.

Deploy Professional Experts in Teaching

• Conduct workshops regularly within the PSY by inviting professional experts such as language experts, soft skill experts, etc. to prepare the students for their career ahead.

Provide on-campus and off- campus Field Experiences

• Integrate employability skills into the course to foster skills such as team effort, time management, project management, ethics and moral dilemmas, code of conducts, communication skills, etc. to prepare the students to face real-world corporate and entrepreneur challenges..

Integrate State-of-the art Technology within all Programs

• Learning activities must be designed on relevant and real-world incidents using appropriate technologies

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR

OTHERS: FACULTY

LEAD: DEPT CHAIR

OTHERS: FACULTY

• Actions must be taken after every trimester to ensure performance improvement every subsequent trimester.

• Post monitoring, we recommend the following framework to improve the academic performance of every student:

• Define student success as: timely degree completion, uninterrupted retentions, minimum cumulative GPA requirements, etc.

• Build a predictive model to arrive at a predicted success score for each student using: pre-enrollment data (income, demographic, high-school score, etc.) and post-enrollment data (class scores, attendance, etc.)

• Based on the success score, segment the students into predicted success groups: Above-average, average and below average.

• Devise strategic nudges to intervene and provide the necessary resources needed each segment.

Attain the Effat Graduate Characteristics

• Review and monitor the progress of students and provide aid to assist the attainment goals.

Attain the English Level proficiency:

• Conduct regular workshops to empower students’ English proficiency and encourage obtaining professional language certifications.

Actions by Initiatives

Automate University Students’ Related Processes

• Identify processes that need to be automated in collaboration with DSA/DAR or initiated by PSY

• Devise a plan with a timeline to automate the identified processes.

• Implement the automation plan.

• Measure the satisfaction of students.

• Improve the automated processes as needed.

Improve Quality of Student’s Experience

• Review and recommend updating co-curricular and extracurricular programs and activities serving PSY Student Success Programs.

• Revise the Academic incentives for co-curricular and extracurricular programs and activities.

Improve Student Services

• Promote and support learning activities beyond the classroom (such as field trips, site visits, hosting guest speakers, workshops, students’ seminars, etc.).

• Enhance academic services (admission, registration, advising, orientation, grievances and appeals, graduate audit, scholarship, graduation ceremony).

• Improve campus wide services (food services, technology, printing services, housekeeping services, etc.).

• Planning, designing, and implementing Campus Life student counseling and wellbeing services.

Encourage Students to Become Future Entrepreneurs

• Cultivate entrepreneurship culture within the PSY by focusing on the activities geared towards entrepreneurship.

• Create opportunities for students to participate in social entrepreneurship contests.

• Develop partnerships with community entities that could support or finance PSY students’ start-ups.

Objective 3: Develop International Student Mobility

Initiative 2022-2027

2022 2023 2024 2025 2026

KPIs Responsibility

Actions by Initiatives

Establish Opportunities for Outgoing Student Mobility

• Promote student mobility program, select and send the best eligible undergraduate and graduate students to the partner.

Establish Opportunities for Incoming Student Mobility

• Plan and implement recruitment campaign for attracting international and visiting students.

• Update and maintain a well-informed website devoted to international students.

• Build and maintain strong relations with international entities (cultural attaché, Islamic centers, international schools, international universities, ...).

Establish Virtual Mobility Experiences within Programs

• Form successful virtual academic and non-academic opportunities and programs for undergraduate and graduate students with EU network of partners.

• Encourage motivated students to join the established virtual opportunities and programs with the partner universities.

• Evaluate the effectiveness of the virtual opportunities and programs and students’ satisfaction for continuous improvement.

International Student Ratio

• Plan and implement recruitment campaign for attracting international and visiting students.

• Provide attractive scholarship/sponsorship programs and support services.

• Plan and implement recruitment campaign for attracting international and visiting students.

• Update and maintain a well-informed website devoted to international students.

• Build and maintain strong relations with international entities (cultural attaché, Islamic centers, international schools, international universities, ...).

Objective 4: Increase Student Population

Achieve sustainability through recruitment and retention of diverse body of students

• % of PSY students’ population out of the projected number in the strategic plan

LEAD: DEAN SA & PROVOST OTHERS: DEANS/DEPT. CHAIRS

Establish opportunities for outgoing student mobility

Establish opportunities for incoming student mobility

Establish virtual mobility experiences within programs

International Student Ratio

• % of graduate and undergraduate students enrolled at educational institution abroad for at least six weeks in the academic year

• % of international incoming students to PSY

• # of virtual mobility opportunities and programs established

• Proportion of international undergraduate PSY students who spent at least three months in the institution during the academic year

LEAD: DEAN SA

OTHERS: PROVOST/ DEANS/DEPT. CHAIRS

LEAD: DEAN SA

OTHERS: DEANS/ / DEPT. CHAIRS

DEAN QA

LEAD: DEAN SA

OTHERS: PROVOST/ DEANS/DEPT. CHAIRS

LEAD: DEAN SA

OTHERS: DEAN/ DEPT. CHAIR

Actions by Initiatives

Achieve Sustainability through Recruitment and Retention of Diverse Body of Students

• Launch and closely monitor a student journey management initiative, where strong recruitment and retention plans cover the entire students’, journeys based on the following different levels:

a. Enrolments – Conduct effective marketing activities on relevant students target groups, attractive online and offline recruitment processes and on-campus school recruitments from leading schools with great pass-out, to ensure enrolling good quality students. Special attention should be giving to male recruitment

b. Onboarding – Simplify the onboarding processes through efficient digital tools, bringing services directly to the students.

c. Student Life – Employ a Customer Relationship Management to track and monitor a student’s touchpoints throughout the journey.

d. Alumni Engagement – Engage alumni in building marketing capabilities and contributing to the university through donations or other non-revenue generating activities.

Objective 5: Improve Alumni Relations

Initiative 2022-2027

Graduates with entrepreneurial businesses

Improve alumni communications and data management

Develop focused portfolio of alumni activities

Establish alumni mentorship program

Improve alumni performance

2022 2023 2024 2025 2026

KPIs Responsibility

% of entrepreneurial businesses of undergraduate alumni within (12/24) months of graduation

% of completion of PSY alumni database

Number of PSY alumni activities developed

% of alumni participation in mentorship programs

% of alumni participation in offered training programs

Actions by Initiatives

Graduates with Entrepreneurial Businesses

• Cultivate entrepreneurship culture within the PSY by focusing on the following::

d.Case studies of real-world corporate stories and operational hiccups faced by them

e. Create opportunities for students to participate in social entrepreneurship contests

f. Invite business executives to deliver lectures

g. Provide consulting services to non-profit organizations (for final year students)

• Follow closely with clubs and activities that encourage entrepreneurial activities.

LEAD: DEAN SA

OTHERS: DEANS/DEPT. CHAIRS

LEAD: DEAN SA

OTHERS: DEANS/DEPT. CHAIRS

LEAD: DEAN SA

OTHERS: DEANS/ DEPT. CHAIRS

LEAD: DEAN SA

OTHERS: DEANS/ DEPT. CHAIRS

LEAD: DEAN SA

OTHERS: DEANS/DEPT. CHAIRS

Risk Management

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk:

Topic

Improve Students’ Involvement in Activities & Governance & Experience

Risk Mitigation Plan

Improve Student Population and Experience

Financial restraints

Organizational constraints (lack of time and resource)

Lack of internal capabilities

Long term commitment

Financial consideration for the student

Smart allocation of funds and collecting extra fees from the students participating to reduce the burden of additional funds required

Hiring additional resources to balance the workload and focus on student clubs and activities

Hire external agencies and organizations that are proficient, to deploy a few of these initiatives

Deploying systems such as CRM and capturing sufficient data should be considered a long-term goal

Form strong relationships with the partner universities, such that the host college provides a tuition waiver and free accommodation to visiting students and provide the same to the visiting students

Student Mobility

Cultural differences between the host and home institution

The international office should provide psychological counselling for those students who are in culture shock or in some kind of difficulty

Language-barrier Emphasis on English learning courses

Pleasantries exchanged are usually one-way

• Follow graduates with entrepreneurial business and invite them as motivational speakers and for workshops, etc.

Improve Alumni Communications and Data Management

• Obtain the information while they are still students in PSY.

• Build unbreakable alumni relations, promote their brand, and earn goodwill for the Department.

• Update the alumni database with all possible alumni information every semester.

Develop Focused Portfolio of Alumni Activities

• Organize focused portfolio of alumni activities and events in collaboration with the alumni association representative through:

a. Engaged and rich discussions with alumni from different ages, locations, and professional backgrounds

b.Social media activities

c. Personalized messages to establish a strong personal communication

d Alumni annual gathering

e. Other focused activities

Establish Alumni Mentorship Program

• Provide mentorship opportunities for alumni by current PSY faculty.

• Invite alumni to mentor current students through individual or group activities.

• Invite alumni regularly to the university campus to meet with the current students through seminars, speeches, etc.

Improve Alumni Performance

• Assess the needs of the alumni for professional development opportunities.

• Offer training programs, workshops, seminars, to improve the performance of the alumni.

Alumni Engagements

Alumni relations solely based on financial contribution

Communication to be designed in an interactive way

Alumni contribution can be in other forms too such as helping in bringing in employers, mentoring students, etc. Efforts should be focused on these if financial contribution is not likely

Communication might be impersonal Customized and more personalized communication to build an emotional connect.

VIII. Strategic Area 5: Faculty & Staff

Objective 1: Maintain the Staffing Profile that Complies with Governing Body Requirements

Initiative 2022-2027

KPIs Responsibility 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026

% of achieve institutional Saudization body

% of females vs males (KPI-P-12)

Enhance the staffing profile to meet and maintain the requirements of governing bodies

Proportion of faculty members with doctoral qualifications (KPI-I-12)

% of Part-timers vs. Full-timers

% of achieved ranks (Full ProfessorAssociate Professor – Assistant Professor) (KPI-P-12, KPI-PG-11)

% of achieved recruiting needs

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: DEAN MHR

Actions by Initiatives

Enhance the Staffing Profile to Meet and Maintain the Requirements of Governing Bodies

• Attract and recruit a qualified Saudis faculty and staff to fulfill the Saudization requirement by governing bodies.

• Promote talent Saudis within the PSY by offering incentives to pursue their path

• Send Saudi students abroad for higher studies to prestigious universities around the world under the scholarship program.

• Identify the needed teaching staff profile.

• Implement the recruitment process.

• Achieve the appropriate desired staffing profile complying with MoE regulations.

Objective 2: Improve Faculty Experience

Initiative

Rebalance faculty workload

Foster equity diversity and inclusion strategy

Actions by Initiatives

Rebalance Faculty Workload

Ratio of students to teaching staff (KPI-I-11, KPI-P-11, KPI-PG-10)

Proportion of faculty with reduced teaching load

Faculty satisfaction with work environment

Proportion of teaching staff leaving the institution (KPI-I-13, KPI-P-13, KPI-PG-12)

International teaching staff Ratio

Objective 3: Extend Faculty Development Program

Initiative 2022-2027

KPIs Responsibility 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026

Provide professional development support for novel pedagogies

Proportion of professional development opportunities provided to support for novel pedagogies out of the total

Faculty satisfaction with professional development opportunities provided to support novel pedagogies

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: PROVOST/ DEAN MHR

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: DEAN MHR

Provide professional development support for research

Actions by Initiatives

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: DEAN MHR

• Encourage the faculty to participate in different research and professional activities by receiving research support (reduction of teaching load, incentives, facilities, leaves).

• Balance faculty workload between teaching and research for research-intensive faculty.

Foster Equity Diversity and Inclusion Strategy

• Provide an effective orientation program.

• Make the University bylaws& faculty and staff handbooks available for all employees.

• Maintain a healthy work environment.

• Enhance the climate of the university by engaging faculty & staff.

• Give employees multiple ways to provide feedback.

• Apply fair and transparent promotion procedures for all employees.

Proportion of professional development opportunities provided to support research out of the total

Faculty satisfaction with professional development opportunities provided to support research

Provide Professional Development Support for Novel Pedagogies

• Collect the annual needs for faculty professional development.

• Prepare an annual plan for professional development, which is implemented in three phases

a. Educational Development

b Personal Development

c. Organizational Development

• Implement the PD plan.

• Assess the plan through the faculty satisfaction rate.

• Encourage faculty to have memberships of professional societies aligned to their respective programs.

• Recognize outstanding teaching.

Provide Professional Development Support for Research

• Develop and implement an annual plan for professional development to support research activity.

• Conduct training and workshops to enhance the faculty research skills.

• Increase the involvement of Professors in research to increase the research and innovation output.

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: PROVOST/ DEAN MHR

Objective 4: Maintain Appropriate Mechanism to Recruit and Retain Competent Support Staff in all Occupational Category

Proportion

Proportion

Staff satisfaction with professional development opportunities provided

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: PROVOST/ MHR

Actions by Initiatives

Develop and Implement Desired Support Staff Profile Plan

• Attract and recruit the finest staff.

• Apply retention strategies, aimed at retaining qualified employees.

• Ensure at least 12% of ECoB staff are being professionally developed.

Stakeholders’ Management

The development of a robust Stakeholder Management Plan (SMP) is critical to achieving project’s objectives in more streamlined and effective way. According to the industry best practices, the SMP can be bifurcated into four phases:

• Phase 1: Stakeholder Identification - Identify the stakeholders and bifurcate them into:

• Phase 3: Execution of the Plan - Assign a committee headed directly by and under the supreme control of the university president responsible for the execution of the SMP..

• Phase 4: Monitoring and Improvisation - SMP cannot be static; it must be dynamic and amended and updated as and when required throughout a project (continuously improved). Disaffected people within stakeholder groups must be identified throughout the process and managed accordingly.

• To achieve the best results through the implementation of above-mentioned framework, we recommend the following to PSY:

• Assign a team of 3-4 members to a committee that is responsible for the development, monitoring and implementation of the SMP.

• One member will be responsible for the mode of meetings to be conducted with the stakeholders (face-to-face, telephonic, etc.). This member will segregate the stakeholders according to their seniority and position with the university to further decide on the mode of engagement.

• Build impersonal relationship with the stakeholders at various levels through constant interaction and engagement.

• Seek their opinion and views of the stakeholders regarding various issues and activities.

• Create a feedback system where the stakeholders are empowered to share their thoughts on sensitive matters without any apprehension.

Note: There might be an overlap for some people

• Phase 2: Stakeholder Analysis - Each stakeholder must be analyzed based on their influence, motivation/interest, success, etc. to develop a tailored plan to keep the stakeholders happy and committed to university’s vision. We recommend the following framework for the analysis:

• One member within the team will be responsible for the communication channel strategy, to choose the best mode of communication depending on the type (internal or external) of stakeholder and their importance to the university.

• One IT and process related member will be responsible for all the data to be stored and analyzed later. This process must be streamlined and eventually the same member will develop reports on a monthly basis to continually leverage stakeholders’ position with the university.

Risk Management

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk:

Topic Risk Mitigation Plan

• Based on the category of the stakeholder, develop a tailor-made communication strategy plan using one or more of the following communication channels:

Push – Where information is pushed to the stakeholder either manually in the form of emails, memos, written agreement or automatically, through a work management software, where email notifications are sent every time a project action has been performed.

Pull – Consists of information and resources like project management plan, resource load charts, and other reports stored in a central repository for stakeholders’ perusal.

Interactive – These include face-to-face meeting, training sessions, telephonic meetings, video calls and any other mode of communication involving direct human touch.

• Devise a communication plan based on the identification and segmentation of stakeholders to establish clear goals and action points. A sample table to illustrate the recommended framework is mentioned below:

Recruitment Criteria

Lack of talent or stringent recruitment criteria in the national market

Nurture talent from within as a part of a fast-track initiative

Training workshops should be conducted, and lecturers should be utilized as a resource under the professors

Management Initiatives Increasing research output with limited resource

Lecturers will gain more exposure to research while contributing to more research output Assistant professors can contribute more to the research while passing on some of the administrative responsibilities to lecturers and admin staff

Incumbents should be promoted from within the PSY

Vision Saudization Finding and recruiting local talent

Incentives in the form of scholarships, fast track-growth, exposure in the form of faculty exchange programs, etc.

Faculty Development Program (FDP)

Building an internal development center

Knowledge Development

Workload amongst the internal faculty needs to be redistributed in order to make time for the inception of an FDC

Introduction of professional courses or workshops to define and align the goals in professional development

IX. Strategic Area 6: Institutional Resources

Objective 1: Maintain Financial Stability

Implement Financial plan reflecting PSY strategy

Diversify income streams

Actions by Initiatives

Implement Financial Plan Reflecting PSY Strategy

Deviation percentage (positive or negative) of expenditure and income from the budget (measured monthly, quarterly, per semester and annually)

Percentage of self- income of the institution to total income (KPI-I-14)

% of achievement for each source of income to budget

Actions by Initiatives

Enhance/Upgrade the Technological Solutions to Support Academic and Administrative Operations

• Develop and implement digital transformation to accelerate administrative operations performance.

• Maintain data and system security to ensure high performance.

• Improve the website presence by implementing search engine optimization best practices.

• Improve the quality and equipment of the lecture rooms and computer labs to ensure high quality of teaching and facilitate the interaction with students.

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: DEAN/MF

LEAD: MF

OTHERS: DEAN/DEPT. CHAIR

• Maintain the financial planning and management control system, with capabilities to perform budgetary and forecasting processes, financial delegations and risk management.

Diversify Income Stream

• Develop, implement, and evaluate Revenue diversification strategy.

Objective 2: Improve PSY Services (IT & Facilities and Equipment)

Enhance/upgrade the technological solutions to support academic and administrative operations

KPI-I-15 Average of beneficiaries’ satisfaction rate with technical services...) on a five-point scale in an annual survey in terms of:

a. Suitability.

b. Safety and confidentiality.

c. Availability and ease of access.

d. Maintenance and support services.

% of fulfillment of facilities and equipment of the needs for the department

LEAD: DEAN QA

OTHERS: DEAN/DEPT. CHAIRS /MIETS

Optimize the Use of Facilities and Equipment to Achieve Safe, Healthy, and Sustainable Campus

• Revise and update Master Campus Plan to ensure its alliance with PSY needs (including vacant land parcels) and to maintain compliance with Ministry of Education Bylaws.

• Annually review campus building and facilities to meet the emerging needs of academic and administrative units.

• Establish a smart campus deployment plan to maintain best practices in a sustainable and healthy campus infrastructure.

• Upgrade current campus facilities with the emerging needs of students.

• Annually review campus building and facilities to meet the emerging needs of academic and administrative units.

• Establish a smart campus deployment plan to maintain best practices in a sustainable and healthy campus infrastructure.

• Upgrade current campus facilities with the emerging needs of students.

Risk Management

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk:

Topic Risk Mitigation Plan

Improve Institutional Infrastructure

Optimize the use of facilities and equipment to achieve safe, healthy, and sustainable campus

Average of beneficiaries’ satisfaction rate with facilities and equipment services on a five-point scale in an annual survey in terms of:

a. cleaning services

b. Safety and healthy campus

c. access for disabled

d. Maintenance and support services

e. security

f. restaurant, CDC, residence

g. transportation

LEAD: DEAN QA – SES & PES

OTHERS: DEAN/DEPT. CHAIRS

Untenable financial demands for new technology commitments

Long-term benefits to the PSY should be clearly communicated before taking capital decisions

Prioritization and smart allocation of funds based on more lucrative opportunities Strong faculty and staff resistance to new solutions related to buildings and grounds on philosophical or other grounds

X. Strategic Area 7: Research & Innovation

Objective 1: Develop Diversified Research Impact in Areas of National and International Priority

Number of national, and international research partners

Percentage of national and international partnered research/total research output

Monitor and Respond to National Policy on International HE Regarding Research

• Scan, on a yearly basis, the possible updates of research by checking the governmental research related institutions (i.e., KACST, RDO, SAIP).

• Design a timeline to review research related policies, and update if needed.

Objective 2: Consolidate Research Achievements

Increase

Identify and establish focused research relationships with national and international partners

KPI-I-21 Proportion of external funding for research to the total College research budget

The degree of international diversity in terms of partnered international research network is as: Formula = (Number of partners -1)/ln (number of collaborated research output)

Percentage of collaborative research to the total research output

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY

Extend integration of undergraduate PSY students in published research

Increase researcher productivity

Proportion of undergraduate students with a) at least one refereed publication during their study) presented paper in a conference to the total number of students during the year. (KPIPG-18)

KPI-I-17 Rate of published research per faculty member

KPI-I-18 Citation’s rate in referred journals per faculty member

Number of Scopus/ISI publications over the 5 years.

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: DEAN/DGSR

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: DEAN/DGSR

LEAD: DGSR

Monitor and respond to national policy on international HE regarding research

Actions by Initiatives

Percentage of operational steps completed LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY

Identify and Establish Focused Research Relationships with National and International Partners

• Review policies and procedures related to research for faculty participation in national and international seminars and workshops.

• Promote research collaboration by enhancing PSY visibility through national media communication.

• Scan, identify and collaborate with possible opportunities for national, regional and international research partners.

• Evaluate the effectiveness of the research partnership and set the new goals for next cycle.

• Prioritize fund-raising efforts through collaborative research proposals targeting national and international funding organizations and businesses.

• Develop capabilities to raise funds (5% from the total research budget not less than 500 K SAR) through external sources by targeting national and international funding organizations.

• Support Faculty in identifying external sources of funding to supplement funding from the University, thus ensuring their financial autonomy.

• Assisting faculty with the process of writing proposals for funding by, among other things, organizing proposal writing workshops, marketing the capabilities of EU Researchers among the funding agencies, and incentivize EU Researchers for networking.

• Delegate responsibilities to the most credible names within the research faculty to write proposals for funding.

• Identify PSY research clusters and link them to the activated research partnerships nationally, and internationally.

Improve research impact

Actions by Initiatives

Increase Proportion of Active Researchers

Number of Scopus publications per year

KPI-I-19 Number of patents, innovations, and awards of excellence per year

OTHERS: DEAN/DEPT. CHAIRS

• Foster the recruitment of leading national and international scholars, leading in their respective fields of research (postdoctorates, scholars on sabbatical, retired scholars as they can contribute through their experience).

• Offer adequate compensation or incentives for the active researcher, based on the research projection.

• Conduct regular workshops and meetings to promote collaborations between EU faculty with active researchers.

Extend Integration of Graduate Students and

Programs in Published Research

• Promote the process of involving PG students in research publication by co-authoring with their faculty.

Increase Researcher Productivity

• Focus further in the faculty recruitment on candidates with a proven track record in research.

• Aid new researchers and early careers in the process of publications and grant proposal writing.

• Provide adequate internal seed funding (Internal Financial Support) to increase the research productivity of active scholars.

• Allow teaching release time for very active researcher whenever possible to spend the needed time on research production.

Improve Research Impact

• Raise awareness for internal cross citations.

• Facilitate the university support for open access publications to increase the opportunity of citations.

• Indexing Effat Journals to help in increasing the number of indexing citations.

• Empower faculty to publish with top 2% (highly cited) scholars.

• Spread the research advancements made by EU researchers through effective PR communication, both internally and externally.

• Establish a regular newsletter to highlight and celebrate the achievements of EU researchers.

• Create awareness of research activities on EU website and blogs as a gesture of promoting research culture both within and outside the university.

• Instill and grow a strong research culture amongst all departments to bolster research output through support and motivation to the researchers.

• Encourage Effat University Faculty & Students to produce quality research by providing variety of venues (Indexing Effat Journals/Proceedings, incentive systems, Editing Office Services).

• Maximize the opportunities for faculty to collaborate with highly cited researchers.

• Develop capabilities to increase the production of IPs, patents, and innovations through the establishment of an intellectual property office in the university.

• Support PSY faculty, students & researchers to obtain external research awards across various fields and categories.

Objective

3: Promote the Research Environment

Actions by Initiatives

Establish Endowed/Named Research Chairs

• Identify research strengths and opportunities of the university and develop plans for scientific chairs.

• Scan, identify and collaborate with governmental and/or institutional bodies for the selected research areas.

• Address potential donors/ sponsors for research chairs.

• Manage the chairs and evaluate their effectiveness.

Utilize Existing Research Labs /Units /Centers

• Enhance the research environment and infrastructure to increase the research productivity through effective use of state-ofthe-art research laboratories, research centers, online databases and resources such as Scopus, Thompson Reuters Web of Science, and software for both qualitative and quantitative research.

• Evaluate the satisfaction of the users of research facilities and equipment.

Risk Management

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk:

Topic

Research collaborations

Research Output & Alignment to National Objectives

Competitive space to get grants and funding from external sources

Financial constraint, lack of resource and skill

Mitigation Plan

Increase credibility of PSY research

Enhanced communication and marketing to get PSY out there in the public space thereby enhancing visibility

Focus on high ROI through spends to hire more resource

Conduct training workshops to develop skill Focus on winning grants and getting funded

XI. Strategic Area 8: Community Engagement

Objective 1: Institutionalize Community Engagement Governance

Establish coordinated approach to community engagement (Partnership and Agreement)

Increase memberships with wellknown organizations

Promote consultancy services

Actions by Initiatives

Number of partnerships and agreements per year LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: DEAN/DGSR

Number of memberships per year LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: DEAN/DGSR

Number of consultancy opportunities offered per year LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

Identify and Establish Focused Research Relationships with National and International Partners

• Develop, review and implement policies for community engagement relations.

OTHERS: DEAN/DGSR

• Nurture and continue community engagement activities both locally and internationally through constant communication with organizations in the community, showcasing the mutual benefits that can be achieved by partnering.

• Develop relationships with the community leaders by inviting them to the PSY for their expertise and problem-solving abilities.

• Focus on developing agreements and partnerships with key government, economic and service sectors, to support the sustainability of environmental resources.

• Increasing the awareness hereabout the important of community engagement.

Increase Memberships with Well-known Organizations

• Evaluate the current PSY memberships and recommend the renewal of efficient ones.

• Scan, identify and activate new membership opportunities with prestigious national/international organizations.

Promote Consultancy Services

• Assess consultancy needs of the market, develop the marketing plan to promote consultancies, and implement & analyze the effectiveness based on the market study.

Actions by Initiatives

Establish a PACE-HIT Training Center and Programs

• Finalizing all the required process to authorize PACE-HIT.

• Align the PSY training programs to the economic development, job creation to support Saudi Vision 2030.

• Develop, and license the identified training programs by the TVTC.

Offered Professional and Certified Training

Improve quantity of community engagement activities: volunteering activities, Conferences, events, workshops, sports, webinars industropedia, etc.

Actions by Initiatives

Improve Quality of Community Engagement Activities

KPI-I-22 Satisfaction of beneficiaries with the community services

Number of volunteering hours/PSY Faculty and students per year

Number of Conferences, events, workshops, and webinars per year

DEAN/DGSR

Improve quality of community engagement activities KPI-I-23 Rate of community programs, projects and initiatives LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY

• Design, and approve an offering plan for the training programs, implement a recruitment plan for the training programs to achieve the projected number of trainees, and evaluate the results of the plan to modify and enhance the offering plan.

• Review, update and enhance the quality of the community engagement activities.

• Increase the engagement level of students, faculty, staff and alumni in quality community engagement activities to nurture the culture within the university..

Improve Quantity of Community Engagement Activities: Volunteering Activities, Conferences, Events, Workshops, Sports, Webinars Industropedia, etc.

• Review the needs of the community to offer community engagement activities.

• Plan, and implement the annual community engagement activities (volunteering activities,

• Conferences, events, workshops, sports, and webinars).

• Evaluate the impact of the offered community engagement activities and plan for future improvement.

Objective 3: Provide Training with Community Partners

Objective 2: Engage with the Community (Activities, Events, and Exhibitions) Initiative

Establish a PACE-HIT training center and programs

Offered professional and certified training

2023 2024 2025 2026

Percentage of executed program s over the planned ones

Percentage of registered students from the projections

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: FACULTY

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY

Objective 4: Enhance Institutional Visibility

PSY Department’s contribution to MCPR/Media Center

Market PSY Program with all key external stakeholders

Develop revised social media presence

Promote the participation in external Awards opportunities for PSY Faculty and Students

Actions by Initiatives

PSY contribution to MCPR/Media Center:

Number of press releases by PSY per year

Number of new external stakeholders per year

Number of participations in Exhibitions per year

Number of solicitations per year

Number of new followers for each platform (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram) per year

Number of reaches per post

Number of marketing campaigns per year

MarCom (Marketing & Communication) Planning Framework

The following is an integrated marketing and communication (IMC) framework followed widely around the globe because of its strong fundamentals:

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR

OTHERS: MCPR

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY

LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY

Number of external awards obtained LEAD: DEPT. CHAIR OTHERS: FACULTY

• Specify the function, tasks and responsibilities of PSY contribution to the media center.

• Develop and implement the annual plan of PSY contribution to the media center.

• Assess the impact of the implementation of the plan on the PSY Department’s visibility.

Market PSY with all Key External Stakeholders:

• Maintain and update PSY Program content and insights as per international standards to attract the best talent and connect with all external stakeholders.

• Expand PSY Department stakeholder network, categorize them and tailor-made communication strategy plan.

• Interact with the prospective students or their families through the chatbot to help resolving any query.

• Participate in major exhibitions to promote PSY Program.

• Scan, and identify, the solicitation opportunities in the market.

• Design a marketing plan to attract the attention of potential companies and evaluate its success.

Develop Revised Social Media Presence

• Intensify the presence of social media platforms such as Instagram, twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

• Enhance targeted ad-strategy to market the content on these social media platforms to increase the number of followers (Audience Growth) and post reach (impressions).

Promote the Participation in External Awards Opportunities for Effat University Faculty and Students

• Encourage the internal participation with awards and certificates to foster more participation.

Review of the marketing plan of PSY

Analysis of the communication process

Budget determination for the PSY Program

Develop integrated marketing communication program for the PSY Program

Integrate and implement marketing communications strategy for the PSY Program

Integrate and implement marketing communications strategy for the PSY Program

• According to the research conducted by IPSOS, digital marketing is the most accessed channel by both the UG and PG potential students, with Instagram and Twitter being the most popular social media venues explored by the potential students.

• The visual representation of the same is depicted below:

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk:

Topic Risk Mitigation Plan

Institutionalize and Enhance Community Governance and Engagement

Assistance needed by the students engaging in community services

Lack of motivation for students and alumni to continue with community engagements

Financial constraints

Provide support to the students in the form of transportation, food, and guidance

Reward the service providers in the form of awards and certificates

Events can be done in collaboration with the local community bodies to reduce the financial burden on the university

Enhance PSY Visibility

Marketing team hiring constraints

Avail the services of an external marketing agency while slowing ramping up internal marketing capabilities