PSCI 1302

ISLAMIC ADMINISTRATIVE SYSTEM

SECTION 1

FIELDWORK ASSESSMENT

Prepared For: Dr Rabiah Aminuddin

Prepared by:

Name Matric Number

1. MUHAMMAD FAKHRUDDIN BIN ABD RAZAK 1918047

2. SHAHANIM BINTI SHAFEE 1913290

Duedate: 14th May 2023

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Introduction

On Friday, 19th April around 10.30 am, we conducted fieldwork at one of the
organisations inside IIUM which we decided to choose International Affairs Division under
the Office of International Affairs IIUM. The interview session was held at their office and
was attended by Dr. Sonny Zulhuda who is the Deputy Director of International Office IIUM
and took place around an hour. The reason why we chose Office of International Affairs was
because their office is located inside IIUM campus and we did not have to travel outside and
it is one of the offices established under IIUM, hence it will be much easier to deal with
compared to other organisations outside IIUM. It also can save money and time for us to
conduct the interview session in the Office of International Affairs compared to other
organisations outside IIUM. Therefore, these are the main reasons why we decided to do an
interview with this organisation.

Firstly, in April 2003, the Office of International Affairs became a formal entity. It is
intended that by creating the Office of foreign Affairs, issues pertaining to IIUM's foreign
students would receive more consideration and focus. As a result, an atmosphere that is
favourable for their academic success may be created. They will then return to their home
countries to promote IIUM's mission to "restore the dynamic and progressive role of the
Muslim ummah in all branches of knowledge."

On the other hand, Dr. Sonny Zulhuda also mentioned a few functions of the
International Affairs Office. Firstly, the Office of International Affairs was established to help
and assist in ensuring the university’s work on the agenda of international relations will be
done. He said that the office task is not necessarily to assist the students but it also incharge
the foreign staff in IIUM. Not only that, they are also the one who incharge in charge of
assisting both staff and students in dealing with VISA and immigration. Lastly, the Office of
International Affairs is also responsible in helping faculties in IIUM to carry on the activities
outbound and inbound to make sure that students will have international experiences and
exposures. As mentioned by Dr. Sonny Zulhuda during the interview session, he explained
that inbound is when the university receives delegates from outside Malaysia to be part of
IIUM meanwhile outbound is when the university sends students to outside Malaysia. This is
also known as the student mobility program in IIUM.

Other than that, when Dr. Sonny was asked about whether the staff in the Office of
International Affairs is sufficient or not, he answered that they are sufficient but sometimes,
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they will be understaffed during peak season especially in their most intense unit which is
their VISA unit. He added that they are adequate to carry on the task but their critical unit
will be out of hand during the peak season since many international students will go and ask
for their VISA matters at the same time together. That will be the only time they face the
understaffed but most of the time their staff are sufficient enough to cater to the problems that
arise.

Observation

Throughout the time when the interview session was conducted, it is totally agreed
that the Office of International Affairs IIUM was very particular with the islamic values.
They hold these values strongly as we can see that most of their staff are Muslim and how
they practise it through their dressing. Their staff, both men and women, are wearing very
modest attire and it fulfils shariah compliance. For women, they wore loose blouses and skirts
or pants with the scarf covering their aurah.

Other than that, according to Dr. Sonny Zulhuda, the Office of International Affairs
sees the islamization as a wide manner and aspects. He mentioned that their staff in the office
are all included in the usrah sessions. He said that usrah sessions are the one way to deal and
it can ensure that they keep on updating any problems and matters pertaining both students
and staff in IIUM. Unfortunately, he added that even though they did the usrah session with
their staff, the usrah happened not on a regular basis. The usrah only took place once or twice
in a month and they make it like a meeting session with their staff. He also emphasised that
they did observe their islamic values and norms in their organisations especially on how they
settle the problems, the way they dress and the way they speak to others no matter to students
or other staff.

On the other hand, Dr. Sonny Zulhuda also mentioned about the challenges that has
been faced by the Office of International Affairs, which is the workload during the peak
season. During this time, all the staff work intensely to settle matters pertaining to
international relations. He said that people tend to be more assertive and aggressive and they
wanted the staff to be faster in settling the problems. This later can lead to pressure on the
staff in the Office of International Affairs mentally and emotionally. He would always remind
the staff to respond to the client patiently as they were there to serve people even though they
somehow needed to encounter the emotional challenge. Dr. Sonny also highlighted that the
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pressures were intense especially in their VISA unit as it is because the clients were all
coming from various backgrounds and they have different characteristics. Therefore, it is
totally agreed that every department and organisations tend to have their own challenges and
it is up to them how they want to cater the challenge in order to get mutual final resolution for
both their staff and also the students.

Last but not least, in order to overcome the challenges that occurred in the Office of
International Affairs, there are several suggestions on how they can cater the problem among
the students and staff as mentioned before. These suggestions need to be done by both staff
and the students of IIUM. Firstly, as the staff of the Office of International Affairs, they can
make improvements to their leadership skills. They need to build a good leadership in order
to settle the challenge. Whenever there are disputes happening, the staff can refer to their
leader to help them in solving it. On the other hand, the students also need to play their role in
order to overcome the challenge happening to the Office of International Affairs. Firstly, as
students, they cannot be aggressive towards the staff. Whatever happens, they need to listen
to the explanation of the staff on why it is happening before jumping into conclusion. They
need to open their heart to not judging the office before hearing from their side. In addition,
the students also need to improve on their communication since it was mentioned by Dr.
Sonny, there are many students that are very hostile and assertive towards the staff whenever
their needs are not entertained during that time despite that time maybe occupied by many
students or even during the peak season.

Therefore, it is believed that both students and the Office of International Affairs staff
need to be more lenient and be understandable toward each other in order to overcome the
problem that might happen in the future. It is also agreed that whatever problem arises, it is a
collective effort for both staff and students to cooperate and not the individual since it is a
collective responsibility for both of them.
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Conclusion

One of the most major social institutions that has a strong impact on people's
attitudes, beliefs, and behaviours is religion. It details particularly how organisational issues
affect the decisions and methods taken by managers and staff. Numerous types of human
contact, including religion, are intertwined. Islam, as a complete religion, ruled every facet of
life as an integrated system and emphasised the significance of its teachings and customs in
order to obtain Allah's blessings and kindness.

Muslims are motivated to undertake Islamic practices by a type of religion called

Iman. Islam regards Iman as the fundamental driving force behind believers' consciences.
Iman, which literally means abiding by shariah law, engaging in the activities that are
authorised (halal), and avoiding the things that are banned (haram), must serve as the
compass for all organisational choices. Although decision-makers in an organisation are free
to make their own decisions, religious principles offer a framework for how such decisions
should be properly exercised. Therefore, it is believed that tawhidic views may distinguish
between Muslims and other adherents, although Islamic principles and ethics are founded on
passages in the Al-Qur'an and Hadith that may be quoted in other religious concepts. Through
their useful concepts and functions, such aspects are found to be able to be utilised in
analysing business performance in the organisations.
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Appendix