Executive answer (for THE Impact Ranking, SDG 5: Gender Equality)

Yes. ASU Bahrain, as an institution, provides structured women’s access schemes across the three lenses requested:

Mentoring & role‑model access (programmed + ad hoc):

-Programmed mentoring in entrepreneurship/ICT:

ASU Business alumni collaborated with the Bahrain Businesswomen Society (BBS) to mark International ICT Day (21 May 2024). The event explicitly included a mentoring session where alumni provided one‑on‑one guidance to aspiring women entrepreneurs and professionals [1].

-Institutional platform—Women Club

ASU maintains a Women Club under Student Affairs (listed among official student clubs). This is a recurring, structured channel for female students to access skills‑building activities, networking and peer support [2].

-Women’s legal rights seminar (Bahraini Women’s Day)

On 27 Dec 2024, the College of Law held an academic seminar on the role of women in national development, including talks on women’s political rights and on pension and social insurance rights—a direct mentoring/awareness intervention on rights and entitlements [3].

Scholarships & financial pathways accessible to women:

-Academic Excellence Award Scheme (validated/hosted programmes)

Published merit‑based fee reductions (15–25%) are available to high‑achieving applicants—open to all genders, thus directly benefiting women’s access [4].

-Athlete scholarships (up to 50%)

ASU confirms scholarships “up to 50% for student‑athletes,” covering women athletes as well; reiterated publicly during the University Football League closing (31 Mar 2024) [5].

-Inclusive admissions flexibility for national athletes/artists

The official Student Application Guide allows consideration of applicants below 60% high‑school average if they represent Bahrain internationally (athletes/artists)—a route that can support women athletes/artists to access undergraduate study [6].

(Note: the institutional scholarships above are gender‑neutral but explicitly available to women; no separate women‑only scholarship page is currently published on the main site. The FAQ and programme pages confirm scholarship availability and partial awards.) [7].

Other targeted support & enabling environment

-Women’s health education & campus awareness

“Stronger Together” (Oct 2024)—

Breast‑cancer awareness + mental‑health activation led by the Student Counselling Office and partners, hosted on campus [8].

Pink October campaigns

Run through Student Affairs/Women Club are documented in the university’s community‑engagement booklets (evidence of repeated practice) [9].

Student Counselling Office

Published services (confidential counselling, workshops) accessible to all students; a core support for women’s wellbeing and retention [10].

Entrepreneurship pipeline and incubation

ASU’s Business Incubation Centre (BIC) hosts workshops and industry talks (e.g., Tamkeen/INJAZ), forming a continuing employability/innovation pathway that includes women participants [11].

Women in employability forums

University‑hosted Bahraini‑German seminar (12 Jan 2025) on integrating graduates into the labour market exposed students (including women) to recruitment practices and AI‑driven skills needs [12].

Institutional policies & governance supporting women’s access:

Equal‑opportunities admissions policy is stated in the Student Handbook: each applicant is assessed individually and impartially under an equal‑opportunities policy—critical for women’s equitable access. [13]

Partnership for women’s advancement: ASU holds a formal MoU with the Bahrain Businesswomen Society to collaborate on activities that enhance the role of women in business—institutionalising an external support lane for women students and graduates. [14]

Expanded evidence narrative mapped to your requested themes

-The importance of the role women play in development — investing and activating their role locally & internationally

Academic/legal framing of rights and roles

ASU’s College of Law marked Bahraini Women’s Day (Dec 2024) with a seminar on the political rights of Bahraini women and on women’s rights in pension/social insurance law—showing the university’s role in rights literacy and civic participation for women, a prerequisite for fuller socio‑economic contribution [3].

Leadership and role‑model visibility on campus

The Women Club is an official student platform that routinely showcases women’s achievements and convenes women‑focused activities—key to normalising leadership and ambition among female students [2].

External recognition and influence

University newsletters and event coverage regularly highlight women’s achievements and speakers connected to national women’s bodies (e.g., sessions featuring representatives from the Supreme Council for Women), reinforcing development narratives around women [15].

-Increasing women’s contribution to the labour market; retaining their rights in health & education

Employability & labour‑market integration

ASU hosted the Bahraini‑German seminar (Jan 2025) with industry representatives (Siemens, BASF, SAP, RMA), focusing on AI, soft skills and recruitment processes—a channel through which women students build market‑ready profiles [12].

Entrepreneurship & business exposure

• BIC programming (INJAZ/Tamkeen/workshops) provides practical venture‑building inputs, a route many women take to enter the labour market as founders [11].
• ASU’s Entrepreneurial Market (Mar 2024) cited in a university news item involved more than 140 male and female students with 20 startups showcased—evidence of mixed‑gender entrepreneurship culture where women participate visibly [16].

Health & rights retention

• Breast‑cancer awareness (Stronger Together, Oct 2024) and Pink October campaigns promote women’s health education and early detection culture on campus—factors correlated with course persistence and completion among female students [8].
• Legal rights sessions (political, pension/social insurance) equip women with knowledge to sustain participation in the workforce [3].
• Women’s empowerment — structured access schemes

1)     Mentoring

• Programmed mentoring: ASU Business alumni + Bahrain Businesswomen Society (BBS) event (May 2024) featured a mentoring session offering one‑to‑one advice to aspiring women entrepreneurs and professionals (career pathways, ICT sector prospects) [1].
• Ad hoc mentoring moments in academic settings: Recurrent Women’s Day and legal rights events create faculty‑to‑student and practitioner‑to‑student mentoring “touchpoints,” especially in law and public policy [3].
• Platform for peer mentoring: The Women Club provides regular opportunities for peer leadership and mentoring across cohorts [2].

2)     Scholarships (accessible to women)

• Merit scholarships: The Academic Excellence Award Scheme (15–25% reductions based on high‑school scores) is published for the validated programmes and is open to female applicants [4].
• Sports/athlete scholarships (up to 50%): Confirmed publicly and available to student‑athletes, including women; useful for women in national teams or club sport who balance elite sport with study [5].
• Admissions flexibility for national athletes/artists: The Application Guide allows entry below 60% if the applicant represents Bahrain internationally—a policy lever that can expand access for women athletes/artists [6].
• Scholarship availability reaffirmed on admissions/FAQ pages: Prospective students (including women) are directed to scholarship information during the admissions journey [7].

3)     Other targeted support

• Student Counselling Office: Named service offering counselling, referrals, workshops—core to retention and completion outcomes, particularly significant for female students juggling academic, health and social responsibilities [10].
• Women’s health campaigns: Regular Pink October activities and the 2024 Stronger Together event (breast cancer + mental health) provide gender‑responsive health education [9].
• External ecosystem partnerships:
  • MoU with Bahrain Businesswomen Society—formal basis for joint activities that enhance women’s role in business (talks, mentoring, markets) [14].

-Providing an educational environment that stimulates creativity & innovation; preparing female cadres to promote community culture

Innovation showcases by female students

University newsletters document International Women’s Day exhibitions where female students and graduates present innovative projects—visibility that normalises women innovators on campus [15].

Incubation & venture education

The Business Incubation Centre maintains a calendar of start‑up workshops and partner lectures (e.g., Tamkeen/INJAZ), an ecosystem where women train and trial ideas [11].

Entrepreneurial Market (Mar 2024)

Mixed‑gender student founders (incl. women) showcased ventures; ASU also received the Entrepreneurship Development Award at GHEDEX 2024—signaling a culture that supports women’s enterprise emergence [16].

-E) Supporting and assisting female students in entrepreneurship

Women‑specific entrepreneurship mentoring/ICT

The BBS collaboration (mentoring session) targeted women in ICT and entrepreneurship, supplying guidance on career prospects and venture growth [1].

Ongoing entrepreneurial education

BIC programming and marketplace exposure serve as repeatable mechanisms women can use to translate ideas into economic activity [11].

– F) Women in admissions, registration & scholarship‑related administration (staffing evidence)

Admissions & Registration Directorate staff include women

• Noor Nael Abdel Hafez Alawamleh, Office Manager (Admissions & Registration).
• Amina Ahmed Ebrahim Ahmed Abdulla Abualshook, Administrator (Admissions & Registration) [17].

Student Affairs/Student Services is female‑staffed

• Maheera Faisal Abdulnabi Jasim Mahmood, Office Manager, Student Services Office—part of the student support pipeline used by female students [18].

Career development & alumni engagement led by a female manager

• Noora Musalam is cited as Manager, Career Development & Alumni Affairs—a critical employability interface for female students [19].

-G) Policies that underpin equitable women’s access (admissions/learning environment)

Equal‑opportunities admissions statement

The Student Handbook sets out that admissions are individually and impartially assessed under an equal opportunities policy—baseline assurance of gender‑equitable access. [13]

Evidence inventory (select, with initial links)

• Business alumni x BBS mentoring for women in ICT/entrepreneurship (21 May 2024) [1].
• Women Club listed as an official student club (institutional platform) [2].
• College of Law Women’s Day seminar on political & social‑insurance rights (27 Dec 2024) [3].
• “Stronger Together” (Oct 2024): breast‑cancer awareness + mental health campus event. [8]
• Pink October events recorded in community‑engagement booklets (repeated practice) [9].
• Entrepreneurship Development Award/GHEDEX 2024; Entrepreneurial Market with >140 male & female students (Mar 2024) [16].
• Business Incubation Centre (BIC) and its workshops/partners (Tamkeen, INJAZ). [11]
• Bahraini‑German graduate‑labour‑market seminar (12 Jan 2025) [12].
• Academic Excellence Award Scheme (15–25%): scholarships for validated/hosted programmes [4].
• Athlete scholarships up to 50% (publicly reaffirmed) [5].
• Admissions flexibility for national athletes/artists (route benefiting women) [6].
• Admissions & Registration female staff (Office Manager/Administrator) [17].
• Student Services Office female manager (Student Affairs) [17].
• Career Development & Alumni Affairs female manager (Ms. Noora Musalam) [19].
• Equal‑opportunities statement in Student Handbook (admissions) [13].
• MoU with Bahrain Businesswomen Society (formal partnership to enhance women’s role in business) [14].

How this maps to THE Impact Ranking (SDG 5: 5.1/5.5/5.b etc.)

-Access schemes (5.1/5.5)

Documented mentoring (BBS), rights education (Law), equal‑opportunities admissions—institution‑level approaches that remove barriers and build capacities for women to enter/complete HE and transition to work [1].

-Scholarships/financial support (5.1)

Clearly published scholarship mechanisms accessible to women (merit; athlete), plus admissions flexibility for national athletes—financial and policy levers that improve access [4].

-Empowerment and leadership (5.5/5.b)

Women Club platform; external partnership (BBS); innovation/entrepreneurship pathways (BIC; markets); high‑visibility women‑focused events—shaping leadership pipelines and digital/entrepreneurial inclusion [2].

– Health & rights (SDG 3 cross‑link; 5.c)

Women’s health promotions and seminars on legal rights—practical enablers of retention and labour‑market continuity [8].

Notes on completeness & suggested next steps (to maximise THE score)

-Women‑targeted scholarship page

While ASU publishes general/athlete scholarship routes, consider publishing a named, women‑targeted scholarship or bursary (and a recipients’ profile page) to strengthen “Scholarship” evidence specifically for women. Current public pages confirm scholarships accessible to women but are gender‑neutral [4].

-Mentoring index

Maintain a public archive page listing all Women Club mentoring talks/workshops each year (speaker, topic, attendance). This would consolidate existing practice into a clear, citable timeline [2].

-KPIs on outcomes

Where possible, publish headcounts/participation for women in entrepreneurship events (e.g., Entrepreneurial Market, BIC workshops) and track internship/placement outcomes via the Career Development Office—led by Ms. Noora Musalam [16].

Conclusion

ASU Bahrain demonstrably provides women’s access schemes through an integrated set of actions: mentoring (notably with the Bahrain Businesswomen Society and via Women Club programming), scholarship/financial routes open to women (merit and athlete scholarships plus admissions flexibility for national athletes/artists), and other targeted support (women’s health and legal‑rights education, counselling, and entrepreneurship incubation). Governance and staffing evidence (female managers in Admissions/Student Services/Career Development) and a formal MoU with BBS show that women’s access is embedded in ASU’s structures and partnerships—collectively enabling entry, success, and employability for women at the undergraduate level [1].

References