<![CDATA[Outcome-Based Education (OBE) requires assessment that captures not only knowledge but also professional dispositions and observable performance. Program-level evidence in Arabic Language Education (ALE) remains limited, especially studies that link holistic assessment design to institutional quality indicators and graduate outcomes. The study aims to appraise the effectiveness of a holistic assessment system (cognitive–affective–psychomotor) in the ALE Study Program at Universitas Islam Riau using Goal Free Evaluation (GFE) and to examine its association with academic attainment and graduate outcomes. This study is a mixed-methods, descriptive dominant design employing GFE to evaluate effectiveness through actual outcomes rather than predetermined targets. Data sources included three academic years (Y2 [2022] to Y [2025]) of institutional records, quality assurance documents (GLOs•CLOs•sub-CLOs; rubrics), micro-teaching artefacts, student satisfaction surveys, and a tracer study. Association with academic attainment was examined through temporal trends in GPA and on-time graduation; association with graduate outcomes through employment rates and time-to-job. Findings: GFE evaluation revealed system effectiveness across all domains: (i) cognitive—mean GPA remained consistently high (3.69–3.78) and on time graduation reached 52% in Y; (ii) affective—“very good” ratings ≥75% across service dimensions; (iii) psychomotor—standardized micro teaching ecosystem (≥4 practices/semester; ≥10 core skills; B threshold). Association with academic attainment: The 40–30–30 design, explicitly linked to GLOs→CLOs, showed a strong association: stable, high GPAs across three years and improved on-time graduation indicate that the system effectively supports quality and efficiency. Association with graduate outcomes: Strong positive association demonstrated—97.5% placement, 4.8-month time-to-job, with education sector dominance (~77%) corresponding to psychomotor emphasis on teaching skills. The integrated competence (cognitive mastery, affective dispositions, psychomotor skills) developed through the holistic assessment system directly contributed to favorable employment outcomes. Conclusion: A 40–30–30 assessment design explicitly linked to GLOs→CLOs effectively sustains performance across three domains and employability. GFE evaluation demonstrated apparent effectiveness and strong associations with both academic attainment and graduate outcomes. Recommendations include rubric standardization, assessor moderation, analytics dashboards, and longitudinal tracking.]]>
