**2. Background of the study**

Inaugurated in 1986, Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) is the only public university in Oman. It has nine colleges, the Center for Preparatory Studies (CPS), and four deanships, all with students'societies or groups, which aim to provide opportunities for the development of conflict resolution skills, critical thinking, and ethical reflection [5], as well as to meet students' physical, intellectual, psychological, social, mental, and spiritual needs [6]. Furthermore, participation in student groups can alleviate academic pressure on students and assist them in practicing, discovering, and enhancing their talents and skills. Finally, these groups prepare students for the job market and motivate them to succeed academically and professionally. In addition to understanding common knowledge, students are also able to develop personal and social skills that contribute to the integral development of participants and to the development of positive attitudes toward themselves and others [7].

To achieve the above-mentioned goals, SQU provides students with extracurricular activities along with academic activities. To promote students' participation in such activities, SQU organizes them through a set of regulations, provides the required budgets, and urges colleges and units to add extracurricular activities to their semester plans. This bears on SQU's belief that extracurricular activities play an important role in preparing students for the job market, refining their skills, and equipping them with soft and administrative skills, such as speaking, communication, planning, and time management. SQU assigned the responsibility of organizing and supervising these extracurricular activities to the Deanship of Students Affairs (DSA). **Table 1** shows the names of the student groups with their administrative subordination (**Table 1**).

**Table 1** shows that there are 25 student groups at SQU, divided into three types of administrative subordination: 12 groups are under the supervision of the DSA, 9 are affiliated with the colleges, and the last 4 are under administrative units.

### **3. The problem with the study**

Although SQU arranged and kept improving the regulations of extracurricular activities regularly, the university administration noticed that students were reluctant to join extracurricular activities and student groups. This could be attributed to the fact, as Ref. [3] noted, that these usually do not earn academic credits, and students' participation is optional and voluntary.

It was clear that SQU students did not want to overload themselves with optional activities that did not involve any marks or evaluation.

Therefore, to improve and increase the number of students participating in extracurricular activities, SQU launched a new electronic system in 2020 with the purpose of arranging extracurricular activities. The system is called "1000" points.

### **4. The questions and the aims of the study**

The current study aims to find answers to the following questions:

1.What is the 1000-point system?

2.What are the main categories of the 1000-point system?


So, six objectives emerged from the above questions:

1. Introducing and clarifying the 1000-point system.

2. Introducing the main categories of the 1000 points.


### **5. Literature review**

The topic of extracurricular activities has drawn much attention among researchers. According to Ref. [8], extracurricular activities have become an issue in higher education. In addition, Refs. [9, 10] pointed out that extracurricular educational activities were widely discussed in domestic and foreign studies; they believed that researchers studied students' attitudes toward extracurricular activities and the role that these activities played in their development. Researchers' interest was also drawn to the relationship between extracurricular activities and academic outcomes [5, 11]. In this sense, extracurricular activities have thus far been found to positively influence students' academic performance.

It has been found that students who engage in extracurricular activities have better academic results than those who do not [12], have higher GPAs, have lower absenteeism, are more connected to the school [13], and are more likely to persist through to graduation [14].

In fact, extracurricular activities at higher education organizations are often considered factor that develop students'skills and reduce academic stress. Considering the importance of these activities, universities aim to increase students' participation in them. An example of such an initiative was designed by Ref. [15] for electrical and electronic engineering students and later for students from all faculties of engineering at the University of Nottingham Malaysia (UNM), with the aim of encouraging students to participate in extracurricular activities, promoting lifelong learning, and facilitating the development of such skills. Further, Ref. [16] accompanied a study aimed at demonstrating the importance of extracurricular activities at Samara State University of Social Sciences and Education, as well as its impact on students' psychological readiness to work in inclusive education, as well as its influence on the

#### *The Extracurricular 1000-Point Project: A Descriptive Study of a Creative Activities… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109718*

development of future teachers' positive attitudes toward inclusive education, tolerance, and individual creativity.

As for students' attitudes toward extracurricular activities in higher education, the literature actually shows that students hold a positive view in this regard. For an instant, Ref. [17] found that students of the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Madrid, Spain held a positive attitude toward extracurricular activities. They also found that such activities had a positive impact on students' entrepreneurial motivation and competencies. Their analysis demonstrates the effects of curricular and extracurricular activities on the entrepreneurial intention of university students. In the same vein, Ref. [7] found a positive attitude from the Tangier, Morocco student studying at a Spanish university. A total of 23 students who participated in volunteering activities were interviewed as part of the study. The study concluded that the sample valued the role voluntary extracurricular activities played in developing reflections that guide change in student beliefs, attitudes, and daily behaviors that ultimately lead to sustainability. Thus, the study recommends that students participate in social projects with peers and instructors, which can foster a supportive and trusting environment. Moreover, Ref. [18] suggest that extracurricular activities contribute to motivating the development of the intellectual domain of the personality and fostering strong qualities in students, and enhancing their interest in communication as a result. Additionally, Ref. [19] found that extracurricular activities affect students'skills development in undergraduate students at a public university in Bangladesh, where the students have acquired some skills as a result of participating in such activities, including social skills, communication skills, organizational skills, presentation skills, public speaking skills, and analytical skills.

In the current study, it is believed that decision makers at higher education institutions will turn their beliefs into practice if they believe in extracurricular activities. A study conducted by Ref. [20] about extracurricular activities and student-led activity clubs at higher education institutions to develop the social entrepreneurial competencies of graduates in emerging markets, found that decision makers have to conceptualize educational institutions not only as a place for learning but also as a place for practicing entrepreneurship skills for the next generation of social leaders in emerging markets. Furthermore, the researchers found that students who get exposed to practical activities during their studies have an advantage in the job market due to their greater employability. A university that invests in social entrepreneurship education develops leaders of tomorrow and increases scholarship opportunities through its alumni network.
