What is your opinion of some of the young men who say that there is no knowledge in the university, and that knowledge is only in the circles in the mosques with the shaykhs, because the intention in the university is mixed with the degree, and there are some observations regarding some of the teachers?
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The questioner : His EminenceThe Shaykh : What is your esteemed opinion of some of the young men, may Allah guide them, who say that there is no knowledge in the university, and that knowledge is only in the circles with the shaykhs, because the intention is mixed in the universities, so most of them are concerned with the degree, and because there are observations regarding some of the teachers, and their aim is the exam?
The Shaykh : Yes, what?
The student: ... .
The Shaykh : A good question, and not a good one. Yes, this person says that studying in the universities contains no knowledge, and this is not correct. The curricula in the universities are strong, good curricula; they contain knowledge, much knowledge. But if the knowledge is lacking, it is not from the curricula, but from the student who does not care about knowledge.
Second: he says that the intention is mixed, meaning the intention of religion is mixed with the intention of this world. It is true that a student of knowledge must want the knowledge for a legitimate purpose, not for this world. But I say that any student of knowledge in the university does not want the degree for the sake of rank and salary; he wants the degree in order to benefit people. Because now we have reached a point where we do not enter the field of education unless one has a degree. I do not know if Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah came to teach in the university, would we accept that he teaches in the university, or would we say, "Bring the degree"? No, no, according to the system, bring the degree, take the exam, and if you pass, we will let you teach. So I say, if the systems restrict the student of knowledge, restricting him from benefiting unless he enters the exam and obtains the degree, then if a person obtains the degree, or studies for the sake of the degree, in order to gain entry into teaching and leading the nation in other matters, then this is a sound, good intention, and there is nothing wrong with it. Yes, if he wanted the degree in order to obtain a rank, to be in the fifteenth rank, is that not so? When he graduates, he will be in the fifteenth rank. He says, "For example, I took the degree to obtain the fifteenth rank." We say this is a base intention, if the sciences are Islamic sciences. And it has been reported in the hadith: and may Allah protect us from that. So the important thing is that the sciences of the universities are strong and good.
The Shaykh : Yes, what?
The student: ... .
The Shaykh : A good question, and not a good one. Yes, this person says that studying in the universities contains no knowledge, and this is not correct. The curricula in the universities are strong, good curricula; they contain knowledge, much knowledge. But if the knowledge is lacking, it is not from the curricula, but from the student who does not care about knowledge.
Second: he says that the intention is mixed, meaning the intention of religion is mixed with the intention of this world. It is true that a student of knowledge must want the knowledge for a legitimate purpose, not for this world. But I say that any student of knowledge in the university does not want the degree for the sake of rank and salary; he wants the degree in order to benefit people. Because now we have reached a point where we do not enter the field of education unless one has a degree. I do not know if Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah came to teach in the university, would we accept that he teaches in the university, or would we say, "Bring the degree"? No, no, according to the system, bring the degree, take the exam, and if you pass, we will let you teach. So I say, if the systems restrict the student of knowledge, restricting him from benefiting unless he enters the exam and obtains the degree, then if a person obtains the degree, or studies for the sake of the degree, in order to gain entry into teaching and leading the nation in other matters, then this is a sound, good intention, and there is nothing wrong with it. Yes, if he wanted the degree in order to obtain a rank, to be in the fifteenth rank, is that not so? When he graduates, he will be in the fifteenth rank. He says, "For example, I took the degree to obtain the fifteenth rank." We say this is a base intention, if the sciences are Islamic sciences. And it has been reported in the hadith: