The year 2020 marked the 30th anniversary of the establishment of Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences, or otherwise known as KIRKHS. The anniversary celebration has been organized in various events with the aim to cherish the thirty years of serving the ummah.

The term Kulliyyah is an Arabic name for the word College or Faculty to refer to the center of studies in the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM). KIRKHS was first established as the Centre for Fundamental Knowledge (CFK) in July 1983. It was set up with the objective to provide courses in Islamic Revealed Knowledge in line with the Islamization and integration agenda of the University. 

The Centre was transformed to Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences in 1990. It then housed four departments of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Heritage; and ten Human Science departments. They include the Department of Philosophy, the Department of Library and Information Sciences, and the Department of Education, two of which are now standing as two important Kulliyah in IIUM. After thirty years of her establishment, various changes and development have taken place, all aimed at substantiating the comprehensive education process the Kulliyyah upholds.  

The KIRKHS education programs are based on a holistic philosophy of knowledge. The curricula in the Kulliyyah expose students to the scopes and extent of human science knowledge that should be explored and applied for the benefit of humanity. Academic programs and co-curricular activities in KIRKHS have been designed and implemented to equip students with enabling competencies so that they are prepared to fare well in the community and face the future. Academics in the Kulliyyah are committed to upholding the University’s intellectual, educational, and social functions. Since 30 years ago, they have been putting their active efforts to accomplish the University’s missions through various academic activities. Anchoring on the concept of holistic education, they have been playing remarkable roles in ensuring all students, including from other academic disciplines, are being best-educated and served when enrolling in courses offered by the Kulliyyah. 

As a Kulliyyah in IIUM, all academics’ activities and student development programs have been designed to integrate Islamic Revealed Knowledge with Human Sciences fields. Academics are also involved in the efforts to make knowledge relevant to the current context and contemporary issues. This warrants a good link between KIRKHS and the community. Various groups of the community have been engaged to support Kulliyyah in implementing her core businesses. This includes the Kulliyyah’s community of alumni, who are her ex-students, and our ex-academic members who are making unique impacts on the world through their service in various work sectors and places. They had graduated from an educational process that aims to develop capable God-conscious agents of change. May they continue to uphold the values taught by their professors, and the biah’ or ecosystem that they experienced in IIUM.

Academics and staff of the Kulliyyah hold tight to the responsibilities of Amanah in providing positive learning experiences to students who come to seek knowledge, from all over the world. Like colleagues in other Kulliyyahs, academics in KIRKHS  too have been doing their best to carry out the expected academic activities. They are active in consultancy, research, innovation, and publication. They are now ready to position KIRKHS for sustainable development such as what has been stipulated in the IIUM mission statements.

The Kulliyyah holds strong on the importance of making impacts on humanity for it is the impacts that count instead of the counts that do not give any impact to the community. It aspires to continue playing her remarkable roles in producing individuals who are able to serve as significant agents of change and development upon their return to society. In this regard, it is pertinent that the Kulliyyah stays steadfast in equipping students with sound fundamental knowledge (thawabit) and contextual knowledge (mutaghaiyirat).

The Kulliyyah is currently strengthening her functions in forging relationships with the learning, learned, professional and public community. It is working harder to continue producing a new type of Islamic religious scholars and social scientists who are capable of becoming effective agents of social change. In this regard,  academics and students in this Kulliyyah have contextualized their knowledge activities with the issues and needs of the community. Their work is disseminated through various media of publication. All activities have been designed with the aim to nurture community-orientated holistic scholars and students for sustainable futures.

Moving forward, the Kulliyyah has developed a set of planned interventions- KIRKHS Downroad 2030-. It consists of the strategies to position the Kulliyyah as a fully functioning center of knowledge that will continue serving humanity, and in turn, attain the vision set by the Kulliyyah’s founders, that is to be an impactful center for educational excellence and research in Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences. Indeed, the Kulliyyah’s community is poised to form a strong backbone and driving force for the sustainable development of society. 

The Kulliyyah records her utmost appreciation to the founding fathers of this Kulliyyah, and her ex academics who made significant contributions to the Kulliyah. May Allah grant His mercy and blessings on all Murrabis, including upon those who have left us, who have returned to their Almighty.

Shukran Abdul Rahman is a professor at the Department of Psychology, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM); and Dean of Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences.