A student will be awarded a degree/diploma at the International Open University once the university and academic requirements, and the standards of performance of the program are met.

i. Bridge Diploma to MA Course Credit Requirement

To obtain a Higher Diploma in Islamic Studies (Bridge Diploma to M.A. in Islamic Studies), a student needs to complete a total of 16 courses or 48 credit hours of academic courses.

To obtain a Higher Diploma in Arabic (Bridge Diploma to MA in Arabic), a student needs to complete a total of 10 courses or 30 credit hours of academic courses.

The Required Curriculum

To obtain an M.A. in Islamic Studies, a student needs to complete a total of 16 courses or 48 credit hours of academic courses including the M.A. thesis. You may find the curriculum here.

Note: the requirement of the first batch scheduled to graduate in Fall 2016 semester is to complete a total of 19 courses or 57 credit hours of academic courses including the M.A. thesis, Muslim Minorities (DHD 501), Tafseer Soorah Mulk (TAF 503) and Educational Administration (EDU 501).

PhD in Islamic Sciences Graduation Requirement

Please refer to the details of the completion and evaluation requirements of PhD in Islamic Sciences program at IOU here.

Bridge Diploma to MA Course Community Service Requirement

• To obtain Bridge Diploma to MAIS, a student needs to complete a total of 108 hours of community service.
• To obtain Bridge Diploma to MA ARB, a student needs to complete a total of 72 hours of community service.

Master of Arts in Islamic Studies curr S2015 Community Service Requirement

To obtain a MAIS Degree, a student needs to complete a total of 144 hours of community service.

To successfully complete each course, a student needs to obtain at least 50% marks, which must include the final exam score. No course is considered complete without appearing the final exam at an IOU approved center where the identity of the student can be confirmed by his or her ID.

1. Higher Diploma Course Score Requirement

To obtain a Higher Diploma in Islamic Studies (Bridge to M.A. in Islamic Studies), a student needs to complete a total of 16 courses or 48 credit hours of academic courses. The passing score for each course is minimum 50% including the final examination score. To obtain a Higher Diploma in Arabic (Bridge to M.A. in Arabic), a student needs to complete a total of 10 courses or 30 credit hours of academic courses. The passing score for each course is minimum 50% including the final examination score.

2. Master of Arts in Islamic Studies curr S2015 Course Score Requirement

To obtain an M.A. in Islamic Studies curr, S2015, a student needs to complete a total of 16 courses or 48 credit hours of academic courses. The passing score for each course is 50% including the research paper and/or final examination score.

To obtain a MAIS degree, a student needs to successfully complete the minor dissertation and obtain a minimum passing score of 50%.

Clearance from the Admission Office

Successful completion of any degree/diploma program requires the submission of attested (notarized) documents to the IOU Registrar's Office. 

Documents that are mandatory to be upload in portal are the following:

• An attested (clear and colored) photocopy of bachelor’s or higher degree—bearing a notary stamp and a signature.
• A photocopy of passport. In case of passport unavailability, any other official photo ID may be accepted by the admissions office (national identity card, driver’s license, etc.)

Please upload the clear and colored scan only of the attested copies to the link which will be added soon.

The following documents are required to be sent in case of credit transfer/course waiver received:

1. Photocopies of university transcripts bearing proof of successful completion of relevant courses against which transfer credits have been received. Each document must bear notary stamp and a signature.
2. Supporting documents (photocopy of university transcripts, etc.) bearing proof of successful completion of relevant courses against which courses have been waived off. Each document must bear notary stamp and a signature.

Clearance from the IOU Payments Department

The graduation requirement for all categories of the degree/diploma programs includes receiving “No Dues” clearance email from the IOU payments department.

The following list includes some of the university dues that require clearance:

• Semester registration fee
• Course drop fee
• Credit transfer fee
• Grade transfer fee
• Late examination center registration fee
• Provisional transcript (hard copy) fee
• Provisional transcript (e-copy) fee

Any outstanding balance with IOU, i.e., dues, must be cleared prior to the graduation.

Upon completion of the program, all students,whether registered full-time or part-time are required to pay a standard fee of $100 USD as degree/higher diploma processing fee.

The fees cover the administrative and postal charges. This should be paid prior to graduation.

Dual Program students must meet all of the following graduation criteria individually for each of the enrolled programs.

• Course credit requirement for all undergraduate courses
• Community service hours requirement for the BA / BSc / BEd and 2-year Associate Degree program
• Course credit requirement for all undergraduate courses
• Community service hours requirement for the BA / BSc / BEd and 2-year Associate Degree program
• Score requirement for all undergraduate courses
• Arabic requirement for BA in Islamic Studies students
• Thesis requirement for all BA / BSc / BEd students
• Clearance from the Admissions Office and the IOU Payments Department
• Payment of graduation fees