Main Challenges Discussed
- Financial Support: Many ʿulamāʾ find that their salaries may not be sufficient to cover all their expenses, leading them to seek additional work. This situation can make it challenging for them to fully devote their time to serving the community and their religious duties.
- Skill Development: Some ʿulamāʾ graduates felt that they need further development in skills to effectively address contemporary challenges and better serve the community. Development in soft skills (finance management, administrative skills, IT) and academic skills (atheism, LGBTQ, Western ideologies, modern history) will better enhance a person to serve the community.
- Guidance on areas to serve Dīn: Graduating students are facing a lack of adequate guidance on the various opportunities available to them and the different areas of employment they can explore.
- Lack of Support and Unity Amongst ʿUlamāʾ: If more support was given to each other, resources and time will be used more efficiently.
Potential Solutions Discussed
- Financial Support:
a. Identify those ʿulamāʾ who are juggling between serving society and making a living and relieve them of their financial burden
b. Start an ʿulamāʾ fund.
c. ʿUlamāʾ must also develop a mindset of sacrifice to be able to serve Dīn. - Skill Development:
a. Identify students who have potential during the course of study and provide them with resources to be trained in their field.
b. Have post graduate courses for ʿulamāʾ covering skills that the madrassah is not able to cover due to time restrictions.
c. Islamic organisations are looking for certain skills.
d. Create a link between the Dār al-ʿUlūms and Islamic organisations so they can identify and train up potential candidates.
Create and develop content for Dār al-ʿUlūms, then present it to the Dār al-ʿUlūms. - Guidance on Opportunities to Serve Dīn:
a. Host a programme for students wherein the different avenues of employment are presented.
b. Create a database of opportunities that are available for ʿulamāʾ. - Lack of Support and Unity Amongst ʿUlamāʾ:
a. Try to build relationships and meet with other ʿulamāʾ.
b. As an ustādh, ensure that you are encouraging to your students and motivate them.
Action Points
- Create a database of opportunities that are available to serve dīn by engaging with organisations to find potential positions.
- Network and establish relations with ʿulamāʾ across the spectrum, thereby giving support to one another.
- Have a programme wherein the different avenues of serving the dīn are presented .