Director of High Studies: " we have opened many new High Programs, and (189) Researchers were discussed in the Master's and Doctoral Programs"  Thamar University Media / Jamal Al-Bahri / October 9, 2023  ■ As a part of the meetings held by Thamar University Media with a number of University leaders and Department Officials to convey even a partial picture of the educational and administrative situation of the University, we had a meeting with the General Director of High Studies, Mr. Abdu Mohammed Al-Marani, to get acquainted with the achievements of his administration and the challenges it faces who started talking about his biography saying that he joined Thamar University since 1997 and graduated in administrative work until his assignment in 2005 to work as General Secartary of the Faculty of Dentistry, then transferred between the general departments of the University until he was appointed in 2021 as a General Director of High Studies which is considered one of the most important public departments at the University.  He explained that one of the tasks of his department is preparing for the admission and registration process in High Studies at the University and supervising its implementation in coordination with the concerned colleges.  Al-Marani added in his speech to inform the University in the year 2022/2023, coordination was carried out for High Studies students in a number of colleges at Thamar University including the Faculties of Education, Administrative Sciences, Arts, Computers and Informatics, Applied Sciences, Dentistry, the total number of male and female students reached (372) students, in the field of scientific dissertations, (61) Master's theses and (7) Doctoral theses were registered during the same period, (189) researchers were discussed in Master's and Doctoral Programs, and (155) Master's Programs and (10) Doctoral Programs.  He continued his speech by saying that many new postgraduate programs have been opened including Master's Programs at the Faculty of Dentistry, Master's and Doctoral Programs at the Faculty of administrative Sciences, including programs in Marketing, Financial and Banking Sciences which is the first Doctoral Program in Yemen within this specialty, we also attended the implementation of workshops and descriptions of those programs, and we were among the committees evaluating the infrastructure of those programs based on the mandate of the Council of High Studies and Scientific Research.  He said that the positive aspect is the interest of the Faculties in describing their programs and courses which helps to expand High Programs within the University and represents a qualitative leap and a significant development in the field of High Studies of the University.  He pointed out that all the programs that have been opened are classified academically scientifically, and workshops were organized in cooperation with the Center for Quality and Academic Development at the University and High Studies at the target Colleges, and international standards for the quality of education were adhered to noting that the programs are opened only after they are fully described and agreed in accordance with recognized scientific standards.  He stressed that through High Studiesand sScientific Research, the University plays a vital role in raising the Scientific Level of state leaders, General Directors of Executive Offices and their Deputies in Public Administrations in Dhamar Governorate and Neighboring g Governorates, where emphasis was placed on Local Development programs, Business Administration, and Public Administration in the Functional and Academic Aspects, and many General Directors of  Executive offices and Business Managers in Private Institutions in the Governorate joined these programs.  He pointed out that the negative side is the low turnout of High Students in most programs, due to the difficulty of the current situation, and the challenges faced by society, in addition, alternative programs are available in some Private Universities and are offered at a lower quality due to their lack of commitment to the quality standards of Higher Education, and not characterizing their courses on Dhamar.  Regarding the infrastructure of High Studies Sector, Al-Marani said that we have done networking between departments linking them to the internet, updating the databases of High Studies Department, and the procedural models associated with these data.  He added also that the Missions Department has sent a number of Faculty members and their assistants abroad for the period from 2021 to 2023, with (56) delegates in the form of a new dispatch, or extension and continuity, and(39) decisions, internal dispatch during the same period.  He continued to say this most of the difficulties in the field of missions are due to the suspension of the financing section for external and internal missions when the University's budget was suspended which led to a decrease in the percentage of scholarships, and the University is also facing the problem of inability to cover the costs of internal dispatch of students who were previously sent.  He added that as a result of the exceptional circumstances that our country is going through due to the external aggressive conspiracy, the suspension of the state's general budget, and the suspension of salaries, the Cadres of the Graduate Studies department are facing all challenges and are making great efforts in performing their work and taking practical responsibility under the support of Professor Dr. Abdulkarim Ismail Zabibah, The Vice-Rector the University for High studies and Scientific Research who was the patron father and a wise man who played a big role in our success by coordinating hundreds of High Students, graduating hundreds of researchers from various Faculties of the University, and we still need more support from the leadership of the University represented by Professor Dr. Mohammed Al-Haifi, the president of the University from whom we have seen great interest and care for High studies in order to raise and accelerate the pace of work, and ease the burdens placed on employees committed to work in this period.  He concluded by saying that we believe that the solution to many of our problems is to support the High Studies studies and Scientific Research Sector and to adopt what has been approved by the Supreme Council of Universities with a percentage dedicated to supporting Scientific Research in line with what is applicable in other Public Universities.