JEDDAH: King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) will receive on Saturday its first batch of 400 students selected from different parts of the world ahead of its official opening on Sept. 23, which falls on the 79th anniversary of Saudi Arabia’s National Day.
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has invited several world leaders to attend the grand opening of the SR10 billion international research university — a dream project of the visionary king. It is located in Thuwal, a village on the Red Sea, about 80 km north of Jeddah.
KAUST offers master’s and doctoral degrees in applied mathematics and computational science, bioscience, chemical and biological engineering, chemical science, computer science, earth science and engineering, electrical engineering, environmental science and engineering, marine science and engineering, materials science and engineering, and mechanical engineering.
The M.S. degree offered by the university will take 18 months to complete, and will be offered to both traditional full-time students and part-time students including industry-sponsored students on semester-long company leaves. The Ph.D. degree, which is a three- to four-year post-master’s degree, involves original research at a KAUST research center.
KAUST, which focuses on scientific research and technological development, has highly qualified and experienced faculty members from 80 countries. Its students come from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf and Arab states, Europe, America, East Asia and South Africa.
King Abdullah first announced his plan to establish the world-class university during a reception given to him by the people of Taif on July 23, 2006. “The establishment of this university has been a living idea in my mind for more than 25 years and I thank God for helping us to realize it,” the king said during KAUST’s groundbreaking ceremony.
Speaking at the ceremony on Oct. 21, 2007, Abdullah exuded optimism, saying the new university would serve as a bridge between cultures and nations and a lighthouse of knowledge. He said KAUST would help Saudi Arabia have a world-class independent scientific research center. It would, he added, act as a scientific base as well as a driving force for the national economy.
“As a new ’Bayt Al-Hekma’ (House of Wisdom), KAUST will be a beacon of hope and reconciliation and will serve the people of the Kingdom and benefit all the peoples of the world in keeping with the teachings of the Holy Qur’an, which explains that God created mankind in order for us to come to know each other,” the king said.
Abdullah expressed hope that KAUST’s benefits would be enjoyed by all of humanity. “We hope that the university carries out its noble humanitarian message in a pure and clean atmosphere, taking the help of God and then that of enlightened intellectuals all over the world, without any bias or discrimination,” he said.
Abdullah said an endowment has been set up to meet the university’s expenses, following a system that was prevalent in the golden age of Islam. KAUST would support the Kingdom’s strategy of developing itself into a knowledge economy.
The university has four research centers that focus on the industrial, economic, social and environmental requirements of Saudi Arabia. It takes care of talented students and researchers in the Kingdom and abroad to make use of their capabilities for the benefit of the whole world. It also offers an attractive atmosphere for scientists and researchers to engage in innovative studies.
Managed by the Kingdom’s oil giant, Saudi Aramco, the university is spread over an area of 36 million square meters along the Red Sea. The university has advanced research and laboratory facilities in addition to mosques, housing units, playgrounds, tennis courts, restaurants and recreational facilities.
