Software Engineering Department (SWENG) is responsible for computerizing, updating and maintaining administrative, financial and academic systems and functions of the University. It is also responsible for creating e-learning environment to support the educational process through establishing special software for e-learning and educational platforms such as academic portal, which allows students and faculty members to do all electronic academic operations electronically. The department also cooperates with Training and Development Department (TDD) to implement training services for QOU employees, students and the local community in the field of software engineering.

Mission:

Develop application & Software to facilitate the academic, administrative and technical functions of the University in all fields.

Objectives:

The main objective of the Software Engineering Department is self-sufficiency and sustainability in obtaining the needs of the University in regard to computerized system and e- learning systems. Other objectives of SWENG:

1. Developing all administrative, financial, and academic operations, software and computerized systems of the University.
2. Creating smart phones applications
3. Research and development of advanced software systems and  advanced technologies.
4. Providing regular maintenance and  technical support for computerized systems.

Achievements:

The Software Engineering Department made significant achievements in the areas of software development since 1998. These achievements include the following:

1. The electronic exams and question banks during COVID-19:

The University has created an integrated e-exams system. This system starts with questions uploaded by the faculty member based on specific criteria. The student then submits the e-exams using diverse electronic devices such as computers, tablets, and mobiles anywhere the Internet is available. The same applies to online correction and grading. These exams are conducted within the highest standards of security, safety, and confidentiality of information, with the provision of timely surveillance systems and the extraction of the necessary reports and statistics. Furthermore, Over 700 thousand questions are entered, and over a million exams are submitted through this system.

2. Integration and data exchange between the academic portal, e-learning sites, and online classes is done using Moodle and Big Blue Button.
3. Integration and data exchange between the academic portal, registration system, Office 365, online classes, and Microsoft Teams apps.
4. Centralization of data and applications in which all the University data are collected for security and confidentiality purposes, in addition to saving time, effort, and costs significantly.
5. br Mobile application to facilitate access to the University during the COVID-19 period with a direct link to the Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip to identify infected members:
   contact them and restrict their entry to the University to safeguard both staff and students.
6. Expansion of electronic payment options such as banks, PayPal, and Jawwal:
   to enable students to pay fees without going to the University and continuing payment through banks and the University branches.
7. E-Archiving of some of the University departments and centers to maintain documents and correspondences centrally through security precautions.
8. Computerization of curricula course plans development and approval using the process planner and users from within and outside the University.
9. Development of the students’ complaints system to follow up and address the students’ problems on several levels to reinforce transparency.
10. Participation in building the Disaster Recovery Centre (DRC) and Cloud backup to use them in disasters by relevant parties at the ICTC.
11. Agriculture Research Centre:
    This center is the vanguard of applied agricultural scientific research at al-Quds Open University, established in the Jericho Governorate to develop the agricultural sector in the irrigated and rainy areas.
12. Reinforcing Access to Cross Boarder Employment Project (REACH):
    is a project funded by the Erasmus+ program, which aims to enhance the capabilities of the Palestinian Higher Education institutions in promoting cross-border recruitment of students and graduates through effective and constructive cooperation between Palestinian and European universities.
13. Admission & Registration, Accounting, Scholarships, aids and Academic Loads Systems:

The main objective of these systems is following up, all information relative to the students since enrollment  until graduation in regard to registration,  financial processes, scholarships or  loan aids provided by the University or external donors. Furthermore, calculating the academic loads of the teaching staff .

14. QOU Academic Portal:

QOU Academic Portal is a system that was developed to meet the needs of the rapid expansion and spread of the University inside and  outside the country. The portal aims at supporting e-learning environment and enhancing  communication among students and teaching staff . In addition, it supports the educational process against all difficulties that students living in the West Bank or Gaza strip face, which prevent them from reaching their University. It is worth mentioning that the number of students users of the academic portal is more than 60,0000 students.

15. Financial System:

The Financial System is responsible for  processing all financial transactions of the University and for creating general ledger transactions, which are automatically posted to the general ledger chart of accounts. The system also processes the material depreciation of the University; all  data of the branches and centers are in one place where they can be accessed and reports can be printed at anytime from anywhere.

16. Human Resources System:

With the increasing number of the University staff; the University provided a computerized system to manage records of employees’ . Furthermore, the presence of such a large number of employees requires  a centralized database to archive the data and retrieve it in the shortest possible time. Such a computerized system increases the efficiency and quality of work.

17. Salaries System:

It is a computerized system to manage and calculate salaries. The  System provides the best mechanism to manage  the salaries in a simple and accurate way.

18. Purchase & Procurement System:

PPS is a system for following-up purchases and procurements  and producing reports that assist

Supplies and warehouse keepers to conduct their work in best possible way. They also follow up the needs of the staff such as stationery and office supplies, etc.

19. Website:

The website of Al-QOU is considered “window to the University”, as it reflects the bright image of the University to the outside world. QOU website contains a lot of information on the University and its Branches, study Centers, and departments in addition to the news and activities of QOU. It also provides the teaching staff, the administration and the students with services and academic information through the academic portal in addition to providing the staff with e-mail service.

20. Question Bank:

QOU decided to establish a Question Bank in order to relieve the load on the University in preparing exams that comply with the scientific standards as well as reduce cost. This bank ensures the following:

• Quality, content and credibility of the exams.
• Confidentiality.
• Covering the entire curricula and displaying gradually from easy to difficult.
• Reducing human errors in preparing exams.
• Speeding  up preparing the exams if needed.
• Facilitating the process of distributing exams papers to the regional centers instead of ordinary mail.
• Saving money.
• Saving time & effort.
21. Administrative Portal:

With the significant increase in the staff numbers, the University developed an administrative portal that provides electronic services for employees, this portal  increases efficiency  and quality of work, it alkso gives accurate results.

22. Alumni Portal:

The Alumni Portal ensures communication with the University’s graduates . The establishment of “Alumni Portal” is part of the responsibilities of QOU towards its students to provide them with the available services and to measure impact and feedback as one of the indicators for the development and taking future decisions.

23. Education Video Library:

A computerized video library has been established mainly to support the habilitation process of teachers at Al-Quds Open University (QOU) and The University College for Educational Sciences (UCES). The students “teacher’s students” can benefit from these “videos” and watch them any time they need to in order to help them enhance their teaching skills. Other groups may also – upon agreement- benefit from this library such as teachers habilitation programs in national and international universities in addition to teachers who want to enhance their skills and develop their teaching competencies.

24. Diplomas registration system and following up courses

This system includes all academic programs, courses,  prerequisites, the admitted   students, the data of the teaching staff  and following up all the related procedures to the students registration, courses sections, registration financial affairs, the grades, grades calculations, issuing transcripts and certificates in addition to following up trainers .

25. Library Portal:

The Library Portal enables the User to search in the University Libraries Index, reserve books or  extend borrowing them, or inquire about the availability of a book  , as well as following-up the Scientific Researches of  the University and publishing them.

26. Mobile Applications:

These applications provide access to most services whether for the students or staff, by uploading the application via (play store), or through the University Portals on Android smart phones devices.

27. Volunteer work and student activities system:

The purpose of this system is to follow-up student’s activities and talents in all the University Branches, in addition to following-up the students voluntary work hours.

28. Health Insurance System:

The computerized health insurance system is to follow-up issues related to Health Insurance for the employees and their families, treatments, chronic diseases and  other University insurances.

29. Database:

The University has two types of databases (central database, distributed database); the necessary measures are being taken to connect the databases to complement each other.

30. Electronic Level Examination System:

The system allows the students to sit for the examinations, especially the level examination for new students, based on high criteria. The system guarantees scheduling the exams, times and dates, duration and safety. In addition, it provides accuracy, speed and less effort in correcting the exams. The system also works in complementary with the university’s systems, especially the Questions Bank and registration systems.

31. Assignments and Examinations Designation System:

This system is used by the sections of assignments and examinations at the Deanship of Admission, Registration and Examinations in order to computerize all the procedures of assignments and examinations designation. The procedures include: examinations program management, faculty members designation from the Deanship of Admission, Registration and Examinations (issuing designation letters for faculty members), following up the assignments and examinations submission from the branches, printing envelopes for the number of students sitting for the exams, monitoring the examinations’ preparations by the faculty members and providing the required statistics and reports.

32. Upgrading Teaching Qualifications of Under-Qualified Class Teachers for (1-4) Website:

A special website was designed for (Upgrading Teaching Qualifications of under Qualified Teachers) project. The World Bank funds this project since the signing of joint labor agreements with the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education and the participating universities. The project aims at improving the capacities of about 1800 teachers in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

33. The Mobile Educational Centers Website:

A special website was designed for the Mobile Educational Center that aims at participating in improving the quality of education in the marginalized areas in the south of Hebron by providing a truck equipped with computers and a library of electronic and printed books, and by raising the competencies of targeted schoolteachers through training courses.

34. QOU Refereed Journals System:

There is an urgent need to design and develop an open source system for scientific journals, according to the needs of the Deanship of Scientific Research at Al-Quds Open University, in line with the technological development and updates in the field of scientific publishing. Therefore, QOU decided to use the open source system in the management process of researches submission, peer review, editing, designing and publishing. The system follows the most updated features and quality criteria, which help in increasing the researchers’ audience, knowledge exchange and information sharing with international database, as well as improving the university’s ranking and highlighting its position regionally and internationally. The system has the ability to browse magazines by number, author, title index, and many other options. The open system allows the user to view research abstracts and keywords in both Arabic and English languages, and to download the full text without registration.

35. Business and Economics Research Center (BERC) Website:

A special website was designed for the Business and Economic Research Center (BERC). This center is dedicated for applied researches that produce innovative and accurate policies aimed at enhancing administrative, economic, and socio-economic development in Palestine.

36. Al-Quds Educational Channel Website:

The website was designed to facilitate watching, following and interacting with the different programs displayed on the channel for live and archived programs on the channel website. The channel also allows watching lectures of different courses for all faculties at QOU, in addition to other various topics available for its audience through the website.