"You are a walking example of Islam." Australian student Waleed Kadous offers thoughtful insights into university life and sound advice for Muslim students at this important transition period in their lives.
University... The final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship "Education". Our continuing mission: To learn about the world, to improve our Islam and, possibly, get a job.
Seriously, though, congratulations upon getting into university. This is quite an achievement. If you didn't get in, then my comisserations; but do not forget that as Allah says: "It may be that you do not like something but it is good for you; and it may be that you like something but it is bad for you." So trust in Allah and you will never go astray.
An important thing to consider is what is different about university, and what being a Muslim at a university means and involves. For those who haven't been to University, it's a great place, but probably different to what you're used to. It is about as similar to school as a tricycle is to a tractor.
Differences from school
The most obvious difference is size in every way. It's not only physically much larger (a bonus for those who like to walk), but also has many, many more students; a typical school might have one thousand students, a typical university might have twenty thousand.
The second obvious difference is in the teaching style. At school, you are usually spoon-fed knowledge in small groups and they mark the roll in each class. Not at University. Most lecturers don't care if you attend their lectures or not; and they don't say "Copy this from the board into your exercise books", it's more likely that they will put up a slide and you can copy it if you feel it is relevant. As for class sizes, certain lectures in popular courses can be attended by as many as 1500 people. Don't expect a lot of personal attention.
The third obvious difference is in the student body. While school may be an environment which emphasises making everyone behave in a similar manner (for example by making everyone wear the same uniform); university is almost the opposite, where being different is the norm (as contradictory as it sounds!!). There are no uniforms, and provided you act within the bounds of common sense and common courtesy, people do not really care that much about what you do. Or perhaps they do care, but they're probably not going to harass you for being different; they're more likely to support you.
So what impact do these differences have?
What are the implications of the above, especially in the context of a Muslim going to University?
Because Universities are much larger, this means that they typically support a wider range of interest groups, hobbies and so on. There are usually a huge variety of clubs and societies on campus - from those related to political parties, to religious groups, to sports clubs and food clubs.
This means it is a lot easier to find people with the same interests as you. Hopefully one of your "interests" is Islam. All the large Universities have Muslims student associations. Some even have a room for prayer; perhaps even a library or an office. They vary in size, from as little as 10 to as many as 400. All are dedicated to Islam. More on Muslim student associations (MSAs) later.
Because nobody's looking over your shoulder, checking that you've been doing your homework and attending lectures, it means that you have to depend on yourself a lot more. It's no longer good enough to coast along. You need to motivate yourself. This sounds like it is trivial, but I've seen many first years make a pretty big mess of it because of this. People who used to be the top of their schools get marks in the low 50's and in some cases, fail. So, be aware of this; don't get caught out!
Finally, because of the wide variety of different ideas at University, it is easier to be an individual. This has its pros and cons as you would expect; it means you have the opportunity to be a better person and get involved in a variety of beneficial activities, but at the same time, it may mean you waste your time. There are so many things that you can do that at the beginning you just want to do it all! Also, it can lead to you being caught in the activities of groups that may lead you to things that you might later regret. Put it this way: Give it a second thought before joining BeerSoc.
Muslim Student Association
I would recommend that you get in contact with your local Muslim student association (MSA) as soon as you can. They can help you in many ways.
A great place to start is Friday congregational prayer. Most MSAs hold Friday prayer on campus. Since attending Friday prayer is considered compulsory from an Islamic point of view (all prayers are compulsory, but Friday prayer in particular must be made as part of the congregation), you will not only be fulfilling your Islamic duty, but it will provide an opportunity for you to get to know your Muslim brothers. You'll easily spot the people who run MSAs. Explain to them that you're new at the University. They'll be happy to tell you about their activities; in fact, they probably look forward to meeting new Muslims. Most of the MSAs also have some sort of membership. Becoming a member helps them in several ways: it helps them financially a little bit (most associations charge a small membership fee), it provides them with information about people who want to help with Islamic activities and it gives them leverage with the University's administration - the more members a student body has, the more it can get from the University in terms of funding and facilities for Muslims.
In return, these associations offer a wide variety of services that far outweigh the small membership fee. It varies from society to society; but at the very least, you can expect things like social events, lectures, conferences, lessons and discussions. Find out what they offer in terms of events and so on... and check their notice-boards regularly. Also get to know if they have a regular place for prayer.
MSAs can also help in many other ways. MSAs contain people from all levels of all courses; some even have lecturers as members. This is a Really Good Thing (capitalisation intentional). It means that you can ask advice from people who have "been there before". Want help deciding which subjects to choose? Ask someone who has done the course before! You'll find this is a rare opportunity; most of the time, you'll only come into contact with people in the same year. The same applies for help. You'll get to know people who have done your subjects before, and they'll be able to help you work things out in assignments and the like. Most of these people will be happy to help you.
How Should I Act as a Muslim on Campus? Personal Responsibilities
We've so far discussed how you may have to adjust to University, and how MSAs can help you, but there is more to being a Muslim on campus. You have certain responsibilities to yourself and to the Muslim community in general, which, no doubt, Allah will reward you for. These are very simple things to do, and they don't take much time. More than anything else, they're really about an Islamic attitude, rather than a prescriptive list of dos and don'ts.
First of all, it is important to be proud of being Muslim. So many Muslims I know hide their Islam, as if it is something to be embarrassed about. This is understandable to a certain extent, given the bad rap that Muslims get in the media today, but it doesn't make it right. There is a lot to be proud of about being Muslim: historically, the activities of the Muslims as scientists and scholars formed the basis for the European Renaissance (a debt which many historians "forget" about), as well as creating a stable, just society for more than 800 years; and morally, being Muslims means that you adhere to a set of beliefs and forms of behaviour that elevate you above those who do not adhere to to these beliefs.
Put it this way: If homosexuals can go on about "gay pride", and the thing that they are proud of is something that Islam considers an abomination; then how proud should we be, knowing that we are on the right path?
What does this imply practically? It means that I should not be ashamed to let people know of my Islamic heritage; whether it be through what I say, what I wear, what I eat, what I spend my time on or whatever. If you're going to pray, say, "Excuse me for a moment, I need to go pray to my God," instead of some made-up excuse, like "Excuse me - I need to meet someone" or the like. Be up front about it when doing your Islamic duties!
Surprisingly, this is not as difficult as it sounds. People usually approach universities with an open mind; and it is likely that they will not mind at all. It may even evoke some curiosity in some people. When I told one person the above, he said, "Gee, do you mind if I watch?" If people see you doing things diligently and with sincerity, they develop a respect for you and your religion, even if they do not believe in it.
The effects of Muslim pride are beneficial in a number of ways. Firstly, it "backs up" other Muslims on campus, who no longer feel as isolated about being Muslims. Seeing someone else who is proud to be Muslim lifts another Muslim's spirit incredibly - when I see someone wearing an Islamic T-shirt, or a sister wearing Hijaab, it still has this effect on me, and I feel like going up to them and congratulating them. Secondly, when people see Muslims being so proud, it invokes curiosity, and interest in them, which may be the door for Allah guiding them to the correct path. You will be surprised how many times you will be asked questions about Islam, without having to do anything "active"
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