Article (1)
Definitions: The expressions used in these bylaws have the following meanings:-
Scientific research: the accomplishment that is based on the common scientific basics. It is executed by an individual effort, collaborative effort, or both.
Lead researcher: a teaching staff member, or his equivalent. He represents the group participating in the research, supervises and manages it.
Participant: a teaching staff member, or his equivalent, who participates with a group of researchers in accomplishing a study on a certain topic.
Examiner: a teaching staff member, or an expert, who examines a scientific product.
Reviewer: a teaching staff member, his equivalent, or an expert who is entrusted to review a scientific product.
Consultant: a teaching staff member, his equivalent, or the expert whom the specialized research center entrusts to provide consultative services or studies.
Article (2)
All research carried out in the university should aim at enriching science and knowledge in all beneficial fields, especially:
Manifesting the Islamic trend and its achievements in the history of civilization and human sciences.
Collecting the Arabic and Islamic legacy, looking after it, indexing it, verifying it and making it accessible for researchers.
Providing scientific consultation and developing scientific and practical solutions to the problems that face the society through research papers and studies that require public and private efforts.
Bringing and nationalizing modern technology, and participating in its development. Furthermore, making it compatible to the local environment in a way that serves development.
Linking research to the objectives of the university and development, and avoiding duplicity and repetition, at the same time, making benefit from previous studies.
Raising a generation of distinguished Saudi researchers, and training them on conducting authentic research of high quality through involving graduate students, teaching assistants, lecturers and research assistants in conducting research.
Upgrading under, and post, graduate studies.
Article (3)
Researchers – professors or students – are encouraged to conduct authentic, innovative research that contributes to the enrichment of specialized knowledge and the service of society, and then, providing ways to accomplish research and benefit from it through:
Publishing the results of research in the local and international publications, and providing the scientific methods of documentation to facilitate the mission of researchers.
Cooperating with the scientific and research commissions and institutes in and out of the kingdom through conducting research and exchanging knowledge and expertise.
Encouraging institutions and individuals to support and fund research proposals in a way that reinforces the role of the university.
Providing modern communication technology and scientific issuances of periodicals, books and other sources.
Article (4)
Establishing a deanship in every university under the name “Deanship of Scientific Research” that answers to the Vice-Rector for Graduate Studies and Scientific Research. Its dean and vice dean are appointed according to articles (39) and (40) of the Board of Higher Education and Universities system.
Article (5)
The Deanship of Scientific Research forms a board called “Deanship of Scientific Research Board” that consists of:
The Dean of Scientific Research as chairman
The Dean of Graduate Studies as a member
The Vice-Dean(s) for the Deanship of Scientific Research as member(s), and one of them handles the trusteeship
A number of research center managers whose number does not exceed five, chosen by the University Board according to the recommendation of the President of the University – as members.
A number of the university’s teaching staff members distinguished in research – as members. They must not be more than seven and are appointed by the University Board for two renewable years according to the recommendations of the President of the University. The board convenes and makes decisions according to article (35) of the Board of Higher Education and Universities system.
Article (6)
The Board of the Deanship of Scientific Research, as long as it doesn’t hinder the duties of the Scientific Board and the boadrs of other colleges and departments, specializes in the following:
Suggesting the university’s annual research plan and preparing its budget to level the way for presenting it to the Scientific Board.
Suggesting the regulatory bylaws, rules and procedures of research.
Approving research papers and proposals, following their execution through, refereeing and funding them according to the rules regulating them.
Suggesting ways of organizing communication with the various research centers outside the university and cooperating with them.
Coordinating work among the university’s research centers, working on eliminating duplicity in their performances, and encouraging shared research among the departments and colleges to boost the efficiency and effectiveness of utilizing the available materials.
Recommending the approval of publications that are refereed according to the university’s regulation of refereeing.
Encouraging and stimulating teaching staff members, and other researchers, to conduct innovative research, providing all ways possible for their research, especially those with sabbatical periods, and enabling them to accomplish there work in a suitable, scientific atmosphere.
Organizing communication with research centers that are outside the university on the one hand, and inside or outside the kingdom on the other hand, and improving corporation with them so as to benefit from any new research trends.
Making a data base of the current and finished research papers in the university, and exchanging research information with other universities and research centers.
Studying the annual report and the final account of the research activity of the university in order to take it up to the Vice-Rector for Graduate Studies and Scientific Research.
Supervising and keeping track of the researches funded from sectors outside the university that are within this board’s jurisdiction.
Forming specialized committees from the board members, or others, if needed.
Studying what is referred to it from the President of the University or the Vice-Rector for Graduate Studies and Scientific Research.
Article (7)
The Dean of Scientific Research is responsible for managing the financial, administrative and technical affairs related to research in the university in a manner that accords with the regulations and bylaws in effect. He especially has the following duties:
Supervising the preparation of the annual plan of the university’s research, and the required budget to take them up to the Deanship Board.
Covering expenses from the budget allocated for research within the financial limits he is bound by.
Technical and administrative supervision of the various activities of the deanship, designing plans and work programs, and following them through.
Supervising the work of the research centers related to the Deanship of Scientific Research, following them through, and evaluating them.
Cooperating and coordinating with institutes, establishments or research centers inside and outside the university, contacting foreign research establishments and centers, and utilizing whatever can be used to update and develop the process and technology of research in the university.
Coordinating with the Deanship of Graduate Studies in all matters related to the completion of the research papers of graduate students, and providing research potentials and ways of finishing their research papers or dissertations.
The constant follow through, and working to provide the financial resources needed for the expenses of the research papers funded by the budget of the university, or other external sections.
Recommending the recruitment of researchers, employees and technical support personnel for determined periods at the expense of the budget of research projects, which the deanship supervises.
Assessing the performance of the deanship personnel and presenting reports on them to the administration of the university.
Preparing the budget plan of the deanship and the annual report to be presented to the Deanship Board.
Article (8)
The management of all research centers of the deanship is done by:
The center’s board.
The center’s chairman, each within his jurisdiction.
Article (9)
The board of the center is formed as follows:
The chairman: he has the chairmanship of the board. He must be a Saudi teaching staff member appointed by the President of the University based on the recommendation of the Dean of scientific Research and the support of the Vice-Rector for Graduate Studies and Scientific Research for two renewable years. He is treated financially as a department head.
A number, not exceeding five, of teaching staff members distinguished in research. They are appointed by the President of the University based on the recommendation of the Dean of Scientific Research and the support of the Vice-Rector for Graduate Studies and Scientific Research for two renewable years.
Article (10)
The board of the center looks into all the matters of the center, especially:
Suggesting the plan of annual research and preparing the budget plan it requires.
Studying the research proposals of teaching staff members, or their equivalents, and following their execution through.
Studying the research proposals requested by parties outside the university, choosing the researchers, following that through, and suggesting rewards for those conducting research according to the regulations of that.
Recommending covering expenses from the approved research budget within the limits that organize this.
Studying the annual report, the final account and the center’s budget plan, then, taking it up to the concerned party.
Studying what the board of the deanship of scientific research refers to it.
Article (11)
The chairman of the research center has the following duties:
Supervising and keeping track of the research of teaching staff members, their equivalents or research assistants. This also includes the direct supervision of the center’s administrative and technical commissions.
Contacting the scientific departments, motivating teaching staff members to conduct research, coordinating their work, providing all means possible that help them in their research, and publishing it in the most efficient ways possible.
Contacting and coordinating with other research centers, in and out of the university, in all that pertains to the nature of research conducted under the supervision of the center, or conducted for external parties.
Preparing the annual budget plan of the activities of the center, then, presenting it to the specialized party in the university.
Preparing the annual report on the activities of the center, and taking it up to the concerned party.
Article (12)
The expenses of research papers funded by the university are covered from its budget, whether they are initiated by the researcher or the specialized scientific parties, and according to the accredited plan and the regulations organizing that which come from the scientific board. The amounts of money are within the following maximums:
The reward of a monthly 1,200 riyals for the PhD holding lead researcher and a monthly 1,000 riyals for each one of the participating PhD holders from the teaching staff members – or their equivalents – are awarded during the basic period determined in the research plan.
The MA holding research assistant receives a reward of 30 riyals per hour provided that the monthly reward doesn’t exceed 800 during the basic period determined in the research plan, and the assistants must not be more than three.
The BA holding research assistant receives a reward of 25 riyals per hour provided that the monthly reward doesn’t exceed 600 during the basic period determined in the research plan.
The research assistant who is a student, a technical support, or a craftsman receives a reward of 20 riyals per hour provided that the monthly reward doesn’t exceed 500 during the basic period determined in the research plan.
The consultant from inside the city receives the reward of 500 riyals a day, provided that his annual reward does not exceed 7,000.
The consultant from outside the city receives the reward of 1,000 riyals a day, provided that his annual reward does not exceed 14,000. He also receives a round ticket.
The consultant from outside the kingdom receives the reward of 2,000 riyals a day, provided that his annual reward does not exceed 20,000. He also receives a round ticket.
The afore-mentioned rewards are not given to the researcher if he is on sabbatical.
Article (13)
The President of the University may entrust some Saudi staff members to conduct research or studies for special purposes that are not within the publishing program in the university provided that the reward of each researcher does not exceed 10,000 riyals per paper. The president should present a report on that to the Chairman of the University Board at the end of the academic year.
Article (14)
A researcher may receive the services required for a research initiated by him for the purposes of publishing or promotion even if it is not included in the accredited research plan.
Article (15)
The research papers funded from governmental institutions, or others, are carried out according to the bylaws of these institutes provided that the Scientific Board forms the rules that regulate their execution, which are based on the recommendation of the Deanship of Scientific Research.
Article (16)
The University Board may form the rules and regulations of research papers conducted by a staff member during his sabbatical provided that this goes along with the bylaws that organize the affairs of Saudi staff members, or their equivalents.
Article (17)
Awarding encouraging rewards for researchers annually is permissible. The number of these rewards, the criteria of choosing researchers and the way of executing this is determined by the University Board with the recommendation of the Scientific Board.
Article (18)
Annually awarding encouraging rewards for distinguished research papers is permissible. The number of these rewards and the criteria of choosing research papers are determined by the University Board with the recommendation of the Scientific Board according to the following:
The research paper should be original, innovative and published less than two years before.
The research paper should be accomplished in the university and refereed according to the system in effect.
It should not have won an award before.
The paper should not be a part of a thesis or dissertation.
Article (19)
Each award consists of a certificate and a financial reward that does not exceed 20,000 riyals determined by the University Board with the recommendation of the Scientific Board. More than one researcher may share the award. In this case, it is distributed equally between them.
Article (20)
The Scientific Board forms the regulations that determine the mechanisms of nominating and receiving the awards that the university presents, or those announced by other scientific commissions and establishments.
Article (21)
The work presented to the university to publish includes:
Theses and dissertations
Research papers
Curricula
Library books and references
Translated references, curricula, or others
Investigations
Encyclopedias and dictionaries
What the Scientific Board deems publishable and contributing to the objectives of the university.
Article (22)
With the approval of the Scientific Board, some theses and dissertations may be published if there is general academic benefit from them, or if they correspond to the developmental plans in the kingdom.
Article (23)
If a dissertation is written in a foreign language and the Scientific Board deems it important to translate, the board will decide on a financial reward for translating it.
Article (24)
Dissertations that were produced in other universities, inside or outside the kingdom, may be published by the university if they serve the objectives of the university.
Article (25)
A thesis author receives a reward of 8,000 riyals for publishing it, whereas a dissertation author receives 15,000 riyals for publishing it.
Article (26)
The Scientific Board looks into all the material suggested for publishing under the name of the university, be it a paper, a book, a translation, or an investigation. It should be original and correspond to the objectives of the university.
Article (27)
The Scientific Board forms the detailed rules and constraints on publishing any of the scientific products mentioned in article (21) of these bylaws.
Article (28)
The product presented for publishing is peer-reviewed by at least two specialized reviewers. The Scientific Board forms the rules and detailed procedures of the system of refereeing, examining and reviewing.
Article (29)
The authors, investigators and translators receive rewards estimated by the scientific board that are based on the referee’s report on the topic of the book, its scientific value, and the effort exerted in making it. The reward should not exceed 50,000 riyals.
Article (30)
The rewards for authoring, translating of encyclopedias, and encyclopedic books are set according to the plan and procedures accredited by the Scientific Board. The reward should not exceed 50,000 riyals per volume.
Article (31)
A reward of not more than 2,000 riyals per book is given to a reviewer for examining or refereeing authored, investigated, or translated books. The reviewer may be from the university or not.
Article (32)
The linguistic reviewer receives a reward of not more than 2,000 riyals per book for editing a book published by the university.
Article (33)
A reward of not more than 500 riyals per research paper and not more than 3,000 for the whole scientific product is given to he who participates in refereeing and examining a scientific product presented for a promotion to an academic degree.
Article (34)
The producer of the material presented for publishing should review all printing attempts and prepare its full index. He is given 100 copies of what the university prints for him.
Article (35)
In case of a translated product, the following conditions apply:
The translated material should be of some tangible scientific or applied benefit.
The translated work should be refereed by one or more reviewers.
The translator and the reviewer should have excellent command of both the source language and the target language.
The translator should apply the notes of the reviewer and his suggested modifications.
Obtaining the right to translate and publish from the parties concerned before embarking on the translation.
Article (36)
Once an author’s work is approved for publication by the university, he waives his right to reprint the book he wrote, investigated, or translated for five years starting from the date the Scientific Board approves of the publishing.
Article (37)
When reprinting compilations that were published by the university, their authors are treated as follows:
If these books, compilations, or any form of printed material are part of scientific projects funded by the university, or the university has finalized the purchase of its copyright, or were accomplished by professors during their sabbaticals, then the producers of such materials do not have any new financial rights when reprinting.
The books, compilations or any printed material prepared by authors that the university has purchased their rights can be reprinted by the university. The authors in this case may receive a reward that does not exceed what they received for the first time when reprinting their work.
Article (38)
The university retains the right to reprint its publications for five years. If the author adds something important to the version, the Scientific Board will decide on a special reward for him after the addition is approved by a referee (examiner).
Article (39)
After five years from the Scientific Board’s approval of printing the material, the right to republish it goes wholly back to the author or his heirs. Usually, reprinting takes place through a special agreement with the university.
Article (40)
The scientific board may look into republishing a product that ran out, or was not originally published by the university if it had a special scientific value. The board decides on a reward for that.
Article (41)
The journals of the university are issued by a decision of the University Board that is based on the recommendation of the Scientific Board.
Article (42)
The University Board appoints the editorial commission with the recommendation of the scientific board. The appointment is for two renewable years. The chairman and members of this committee should be at least associate professors.
Article (43)
The editorial committee has the literary responsibility for what is published in the journal. It also supervises the issuances of the journal and determines the issue to be printed.
Article (44)
Research papers and articles are not published in the university’s journals unless they are approved by two specialized referees, one of whom at least is from outside the university.
Article (45)
The Scientific Board grants an annual reward of 5,000 riyals to the chairman of the editorial committee, and 3,000 riyals for each member.
Article (46)
The reward of 1,000 riyals may be awarded to those the university journals request from them to publish their refereed research.
Article (47)
The reward of not more than 500 riyals is given for each research presented for publishing in the university’s refereed journals, research centers, conferences or seminars held in the university, and the research proposals requesting the funding of the university.
Article (48)
The editorial committee presents an annual report to the Scientific Board that explains its activities in detail.
General Rules
Article (49)
In a way that does not contradict these bylaws, the Scientific Board, with the suggestion of the Board of the Deanship of Scientific Research, forms the detailed bylaws and internal rules regulating the production of research, publishing it, and rewarding it on the levels of the university, college, institutes or research centers
Article (50)
These bylaws are effective from the date they are approved by the Higher Education Board. They eliminate any other previous bylaws that contradict them.
Article (51)
The Higher Education Board has the right to reinterpret these bylaws.
Implementing Regulations of the Law of Ethics of Research on Living Creatures