Women Development

AIUB Women Forum aspires to empower women at all levels of decision-making with education, entrepreneurship and leadership. This Forum aims to rejuvenate people, provide opportunities for them to develop and instill faith in women. This involves not only women aspiring to the top of the corporate ladder but also women at the uppermost of the social ladder. The Forum brings together women's rights activists, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), women's organizations and influential female entrepreneurs. AWF emphasized the role of women in exploring and resolving barriers to opportunities in education, industry and political leadership, including women's health, spousal abuse and sexual assault. The AWF foresees a world in which equality for all is more than a slogan, but a fact, and human rights are recognized and secured. All AIUB women, including students, faculty and administrative staff are members of this Forum, which organizes various awareness programs on women's rights and empowerment-

 

• https://www.aiub.edu/aiub-celebrates-international-womens-day-iwd2019
• https://www.aiub.edu/inspirational-seminar-on-motherhood-and-career-development-held-at-aiub-to-celebrate-international-womens-day
• https://www.aiub.edu/selima-ahmad-featured-as-distinguished-speaker-in-the-dr-anwarul-abedin-lecture-series
• https://www.aiub.edu/the-launching-of-the-aiub-women-forum

 

AIUB and City Alo have agreed to work together (by signing the MOU which will remain effective up to 2024) to create a cooperative environment for developing and conducting specially designed entrepreneurial course for the women entrepreneur. City Alo is the dedicated women banking division of the City Bank. Their mission is to empower women by giving financial assistance and support to initiate as well as expand their business. The City Alo Certification Course is an initiative that will enhance the financial literacy of women in Bangladesh which can make a positive contribution to the lives of the end customers – economically and socially. The in detail of registration for “ City Alo Certification Program” is available in the following link: https://www.aiub.edu/registration-for-city-alo-certification-program-for-women-entrepreneurs

 

 

• Mentoring and Counselling

​Academic Consultation and mentoring are unique methods of supporting students (both male and female) to improve their learning and leadership skills, motivating them towards their future career and professional development. At AIUB faculty members are also serving as role of a mentor/counsellor for students. Faculty counselling hours are posted on the office door of the faculty members, and in addition it is also available to student Virtual University Expert System (VUES) portal. The standard allocation is twenty (20) hours per week for academic counseling and mentoring where approximately 50% students participate. This scheme is available for all students, regardless of religion, race, color, age, disability, nationality, marital status, sexual orientation including gender identity.

• Scholarships

​AIUB has a structured policy (https://www.aiub.edu/admission/scholarships) to provide several scholarships to students irrespective to gender and age, in order to bridge the gap between the education cost and their financial resources. Some of these scholarships are available for both undergraduate and graduate students. Among all these scholarships one scholarship is there which is dedicated to only female student which is “The Dr. Anwarul Abedin Scholarship Grant for Female University Student”. The late Dr. Anwarul Abedin, AIUB's Founder and Chairman of the Board of Trustees, had a vision of providing scholarship opportunities for female students in order to reduce the gender gap. By taking advantage of this opportunity, female students gain a competitive advantage that promotes continuing and advanced education from the undergraduate to graduate levels. Every Spring and Fall semester, the Dr. Anwarul Abedin Leadership Grant is giving out with the aim of empowering female leaders. Each semester, a scholarship is given to one female student (mentioned above) for the duration of the program.The program first aired in 2013. The grant only covers the tuition fee (100%) for eligible female students each regular semester.

• Equitable access

​AIUB Management has always believed in fairness in terms of the program which are carried out to support the higher education in the society. AIUB does not have a gender imbalance. If any academic or non-academic staff member is eligible for promotion. Employees are promoted wholeheartedly without any discrimination in regards whether the applicant is a male or female. And within the hierarchy, all types of employees (academic and non-academic) are paid equally. In terms of holding jobs, many females are in managerial positions, indicating that not only does AIUB not have a gender bias, but is also willing to empower women. It is fortunate that the Vice Chancellor is a woman, her passion and concern for female to get educated with the same opportunity given to male. Ms. Nadia Anwar, the former Chairman of the Board, and Founder and Vice President, Student Affairs is also a woman with a charismatic personality. AIUB's board of trustees has 5 female members out of a total of 9. Women hold leadership roles including Advisor for Department of Law, and BBA Director, as well as Additional Director for Institutional Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC-AIUB), Head, Department of MGMT & HRM for Business School, Head for Department of Physics, convenors, Special Assistant to the OSA, and Junior Executives, among other academic and non-academic positions. The university has never compromised, segregated or favored one gender over another.

• Good health and well being

​For ensuring good health, AIUB holds a medical center which is located in Annex 1. Medical center of AIUB is accessible to all stuff including grade 4 employees where free medication and medical advices are given by two senior stuff nurses. The medical center is open in weekdays (9 am-5pm). Following facilities are provided by AIUB medical center:

• Routine and emergency medical services to students, teachers, officers and staff.
• Special care is given to pregnant women and lactating mothers.
• Regular monitoring of hypertensive and diabetic patients including Blood glucose screening.
• Oxygen therapy and nebulization are given if necessary.
• Free hygiene products are provided to women in case of emergency.
• The medical center has an air-conditioned ambulance which is well equipped for carrying emergency patients to hospitals.

 

 

• Fitness facilities​

For ensuring proper fitness of all staff including students, AIUB possesses a highly facilitated with modern fitness equipment gymnasium which is accessible for all students (both male and female), faculty (both male and female) and administrative staff. The gym is located at the 10^th floor of D-building of AIUB permanent campus. There are two instructors who help the beginners with the workout routine and training. The gym facilities are free for all faculties and administrative staff whereas in case of students, they have to go for registration and have to pay a lump some money every month to avail the facilities of gym.

There are total three sessions available to avail the gym facilities out of which one session dedicated only for female students (from 9.00 am-12.00 pm) and one for male students (from 12.00 pm-4.30 pm). There is a session after office hours (5.00 pm) specially for all staffs including faculties and officials.

• Sports Complex

​AIUB owns Office of Sports (OS) which promotes sports facilities and opportunities both for male and female students by organizing internal tournaments and participating in external ones. Not only this, OS develop various sports teams (male and female teams) of the University for participating in external tournaments. Besides that, OS introduce and maintain sports scholarships for both male and female students: https://www.aiub.edu/offices/os. Additionally, AIUB organizes various interschool and intercollege cricket matches: https://www.aiub.edu/aiub-intercollege-women-cricket-championship-2022-held. Not only in cricket, in football also AIUB football team is representing AIUB not only nationally but also internationally. In fact, three members of AIUB football team were in “Bangladesh Women’s Football Team” and have won “The SAFF Women’s Championship 2022”:  https://www.aiub.edu/congratulation--the-bangladesh-womens-football-team-for-winning-the-saff-womens-championship-2022

 

 

• Mental health support

​To take care of all student’s and employee’s (both male and female) mental health, AIUB has started providing professional mental health services in collaboration with wEvolve. wEvolve is a holistic organization geared towards promoting, enabling, and improving mental health for all those who are struggling alone(https://wevolvebd.org/about/). In this day and age, when we deal with so many complexities even at a young age, seeking expert counseling when in need should no longer be a stigma and that is precisely the narrative that AIUB and wEvolve is attempting to change.
From October 11, 2022, mental health support services have been available for AIUB students and employees (both male and female) at the AIUB Campus. One counsellor from wEvolve will be available from 10 AM – 4 PM on weekdays (except government holidays) at 3rd Floor, Building D, AIUB permanent campus.

• Maternity leave​

AIUB values its gender-diverse workforce, working towards empowering, promoting, and retaining its talented and dedicated female employees. Understanding the obligations and responsibilities of motherhood, AIUB provides consistent support to all its female academic and administrative employees through its maternity leave. The university aims to ensure the health and well-being of both mother and child, during and after pregnancy, enabling them to continue their careers even after childbirth.

AIUB ensures fair and consistent treatment of all pregnant fulltime female employees and support them to return to work after the birth of a child in order to continue in their chosen career and allow the University to retain trained and competent staff.  The maternity benefits are offered to permanent female employees of AIUB in the form of paid leave.

• Accommodation facilities for female students

​AIUB is currently outsourcing the student accommodation facilities in nearby areas to the campus. Separate male and female dormitories are maintained at the outsourced premises with modern facilities and under strict supervisions.

• On campus employment for female students

​Since inception, AIUB has always provided students with on-campus part-time work opportunities with a special emphasis on female students. The justification for this on-campus work is becausethe female students may not get permission from their parents to go outside of campus while studying to improve their communication, teamwork and leadership skills. Apart from these, AIUB Management is also involved in offering part-time employment to female students in addition to male students for the following reasons.

• If a student is wise enough to get a job in a field related to their studies, the job experience will improve the quality of their portfolio.
• When students work part-time learn how to handle their time effectively.
• Furthermore, a structured lifestyle prevents adolescents from engaging in harmful behaviors.

 

• Female engagement in club events

​​AIUB stands for alliance of inspiring female students to participate in a wide range of club activities, as shown by the number of female members of various clubs(https://www.aiub.edu/oncampus/clubs) and leadership positions such as President, Vice President, and Chief Marketing Officer. The key goal is to improve the personal development and leadership skills of female students. Joining clubs encourages them to interact with a diverse group of people, broadening their perspectives and ingenuity while also building leadership skills in a peer setting, which can benefit them both professionally and personally. Female students make up over one-quarter of the club's membership and approximately 20% of the clubs' Executive Committees.

 

 

AIUB is a non-profit officially recognized (by UGC-Bangladesh) private Higher Education Institution (HEI) which offers different programs and courses under four faculties (Faculty of Engineering FE, Faculty of Science and Technology FST, Faculty of Business Administration FBA and Faculty of Arts and Social Science FASS) leading to officially recognized higher education degrees (Bachelor and Master degrees) in several areas of study. Moreover, as a Higher Education Institution, AIUB practices a concrete admission policy which is accessible to all irrespective to gender, age, ethnicity and minority. Additionally, AIUB pursue a tracking methodology which keeps on tracing the total number of students who have applied and have got enrolled every semester. In fact, AIUB possesses a statistical and systematic tracking system which is dedicated to women only that measures the percentage of female students who have applied to get admitted in AIUB, among which percentage of female students get accepted for admission at degree granting and percentage of female students’ enrollment in AIUB.

As a coeducation institution AIUB utilizes continuous modern education techniques/schemes to track and measure the progress rate of both male and female students by creating a monitoring and counselling facility that nurtures intuitive knowledge. In order to fulfill that goal, AIUB has office of Probation (OP) that continuously monitors and identifies the students (both male and female) who fall under a specific CGPA and contacts with the students along with their parents to develop a generic idea regarding academic progress. To do so, OP does assign those students to specific faculty in order to assist them regarding their academic progress. Not only that, female academic counselors are assigned to female students upon request for counselling. Finally, OP generates a statistical report on probation students.

Furthermore, AIUB monitors the graduation rate of all students via convocation (https://www.aiub.edu/about/Convocation) from which at a glance the graduation rate of female and male students can be understood separately. According to that several initiatives are taken if it is found out that female students are becoming outnumbered compared to male students.

As part of AIUB’s Family, the University creates opportunities for its stakeholders. The female students, faculties and staff who have children and are not able to take care of them at home during their study/ working hours are the primary concerns/beneficiaries of the program. With a view to supporting these students and staff (both academic and administrative), the University has established a childcare facilities which is governed by an approved Childcare Committee of AIUB. Infants from six (6) months to two (2) years are eligible to avail Childcare/Early Childhood Care Service and children from two (2) years to four (4) years are eligible to avail Pre-School Play Services. In order to enjoy the facility of the AIUB Childcare Facilities, every parent will be needed to go for registration with proper documentation. There is lump some payment applicable for each child which is due monthly. Followings are some features of AIUB Childcare Facilities-

• The Childcare Facilities shall be governed by an approved Childcare Committee of AIUB which will monitor its activities and ensure that Pre-school and Early Childhood Care services of the highest quality are being delivered at the childcare.
• Necessary infrastructure, support services, human resources and recreational environment with family atmosphere shall be ensured at the childcare.
• The committee and the staff of the childcare shall arrange monthly meeting with the parents/guardians to present & discuss relevant information regarding their children and to receive their feedback for further improvement.
• Parents will provide food, crockeries (such as milk bottle, spoon, plate, bowl etc.)  toiletries, cleaning and other necessities for the child.
• AIUB Childcare Facilities will open from 7: 45 am and close at sharp 5:00 pm.
• Parents must register while entering and going out responsively and regularly.
• First AID support will be provided by AIUB Medical Center but in case of extreme medical case, AIUB will not be responsible to provide such service.
• AIUB Childcare will not be liable for the mental, social and physical growth development of the child.
• In case of any negligence and intentional accidents of the Childcare committee, the committee will be responsible after proper investigation. Decision and necessary action will be taken as per the findings of the investigation.

 

 

IEEE AIUB Student Branch Women in Engineering (WIE) Affinity Group is initiated with the goal of improving women’s contribution towards engineering and computing to shape their career and stand high in their respected fields. The goal of AIUB WIE Affinity Group is to improve the participation of women in engineering and their respected fields. And in order to do so, AIUB WIE Affinity Group has organized many events to support female undergraduates to understand their own skills and capabilities and widen their perspective.

• https://www.aiub.edu/webinar-on-new-era-of-data-science--by-ieee-aiub-student-branch
• https://www.aiub.edu/ieee-aiub-student-branch-women-in-engineering-wie-affinity-group-successfully-organized-a-webinar-on-personal-branding-and-industrial-influence

 

 

AIUB is leading in the Gender Equity and Women's Empowerment Movement using a variety of strategies to use Bangladesh's more skilled female labor force to accelerate economic and social progress. AIUB is attempting to increase women's confidence and awareness (students, faculty members, and staff), as well as to encourage women at all levels to learn skills in order to engage in the country's Development. Female students of AIUB have received the Women in Leadership (WIL) award twice(https://www.aiub.edu/fba-student-awarded-wil-honorable-mention). It was organized by WIL and they won for their voice, vision and vividness which serve as an inspiration to other Bangladeshi women. The AIUB held workshops and game shows in different girls' schools and colleges to encourage them to continue their education. Female faculty members are having a welcoming atmosphere to conduct research and participate in a variety of academic and non-academic activities. AIUB encourages them to take the lead in non-academic events as mentors, supervisors and coordinators. High interest has been observed in the faculty exchange program, as well as participation in local and international conferences on a regular basis.