The Non-Profit Entrepreneurial University : A Proposed Financing

Abstract

1 Title of Project: The Non-Profit Entrepreneurial University: A Proposed Financing One cannot go to the point as to accuse the policies of university teaching in Muslim Countries as failures, because that would be a denial of many efforts that have been and are still exerted on a number of fronts, but we draw attention to the fact that the continuation in the same direction would lead to unwanted results in developing our society which needs to catch up with the developed countries in terms of science and industry. We do not deny that university teaching requires very high budgets and that most Muslim Countries do not have enough resources. This does not mean that we should submit to the status-quo, because it is possible to start with some gradual steps, provided that the political will is there, so that the universities will be able to overcome the problem of finance which is considered as one of the challenges they face. The concept of entrepreneurial university has become widespread in the academia and has been put in practice by some universities in different parts of the world in their search for extra sources of funds in order to reduce the deficits in their budgets. By looking at the condition of university teaching in Muslim Countries, we find that the social and economic dimensions will not be realized by themselves but through the search for a formula for a non-profit entrepreneurial university whose activities would generate revenues that contribute to the expenses and any surplus is not usurped by the owners or the organisers or the directors but ploughed back in the university budget for future improvements. The aim of this research is to propose a formula of such university suitable for the conditions and circumstances of Muslim countries that would realise the economic and social objectives of university teaching. This will be done through the exposition and discussion of some experiments undertaken in the universities of some Muslim countries showing their advantages and disadvantages from the socio-economic objectives of university teaching and the possibility of implementing the concept of non-profit entrepreneurial university, which goes hand in hand with the specific characteristics of the Muslim society and which realizes the requirements of socio-economic development in these countries.