Dini Exams
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Dini Exams refers to a set of exams that evaluate students and scholars knowledge about Islam. The exam can be written in both Iran and Saudi Arabia, and unlike many other religious exam it does not involve questions outside of Koran. There are four different levels in the exam: D8, D12, D16, and D Tamam. Students in Islamic countries often begin the study at the first grade until the 12th grade in schools(when they can get their D12). Usually studying for the exam is mandatory while taking the exam is completely up to the students.
D8: Requires students to study 16 different textbooks that has been taught to them during their 8 years of study. (8 textbooks are related to the details of Islam -roughly 100 page each- and 8 texts are related to Koran and related analysis -roughly 60 pages each). A knowledge of approximately 1300 pages is required in order to pass the exam.
D12: Similar to D8 except more complex cases and philosophy is involved. An approximately 400 pages of knowledge is required. This level requires students to have advanced knowledge of Arabic language. This is usually gained by studying and analyzing Arabic for 6 years (grade 7-12 in Iran). Analysis of Koran for people whose first language is not Arabic could be considered the hardest part of the exam.
D16: Is gained only by studying religion in a post-secondary institution. Full knowledge of Arabic is required.
D Tamam: The most prestigious, and highest degree in Dini Trilogy. Some may consider it as a PhD in Religion of Islam.
Each degree requires a successful passing of the preceding one with at least a mark of over 65%.
What is hard about the exams no matter which level they are testing is that the official textbooks given must be read carefully and be memorized. This is why students are strongly advised to take detailed notes and diagrams.
D8 exam can be written in English, Arabic, Urdu, Persian, and French. First half of D12 is available in English, Persian and Arabic while the second half is only available in Arabic. D12+ is only available in Arabic.
