Page 23 - Faculty Handbook 2021-22

9. Foundation Program

9.1. Introduction
New students enter into the Foundation Program (FP) at DU, whose purpose is to bring them up
to the required level in English, Math, IT, and General Study Skills. The FP is a one-year bridge
program intended to equip high school graduates to pursue university majors and is undertaken
by most university students in Oman. DU’s FP follows the standards outlined by the Oman

Academic Standards (OAS) for General Foundation Program (GFP).

9.2. Organizational Structure
The Foundation Program is headed by a Director overseeing the following Three (3) Units

1) English Language Unit

2) Mathematics Unit
3) Information Technology (IT) Unit

9.3. Vision

The Foundation Program aspires to occupy a position of distinction amongst general foundation
programs in the Sultanate by imparting quality education.

9.4. Mission

The Foundation Program strives to equip students with quality outcome-based education in a rich
teacher-learner environment conducive to academic excellence and life-long learning.

9.5. Structure of the Program

The FP focuses on three major areas: English, Mathematics and IT, plus General Study Skills. The
emphasis of the English program is on the general communication and academic skills. The
Mathematics program is divided into Basic, Applied and Pure sessions, while the IT program
focuses on the skills required to use technology effectively in routine studies. General study skills
are integrated in the English, Mathematics and IT Programs and aim to help students develop the
range of useful study skills that they need to succeed at the university level.

9.6. Placement in FP

Students are placed in the appropriate level or exempted from the FP based on their results in
the placement tests for English, Mathematics and IT. In the FP, there are three levels for English
and two for Mathematics and IT, in addition to a pre-maths course.

The FP initially assesses new students’ English skills via a placement test. The test is the Cambridge
English Placement Test (CEPT), which measures students’ various levels against the Common
European Framework (CEFR), from A1 to C1. New students’ scores on the CEPT are used to place
them into the appropriate level, in which they receive 20-25 hours of English classes per week.

Students are also assessed in Math and IT via an in-house Moodle-based exam, which places them
as per their performance in respective levels. Students may move to the next level in math and IT
following a recommendation from their teachers and a high score in the end-of-the-term final exam.

Dhofar University Faculty Handbook (2021-22) Page 19