Qatar University (QU) in partnership with Times Higher Education (THE), will host the first edition of Times Higher Education Mena Universities Summit on February 23-24, 2015 under the patronage of HH the Deputy Emir Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad al-Thani.
Sheikh Dr Abdullah bin Ali al-Thani, vice-chair of QU Board of Regents and president of Hamad bin Khalifa University will represent HH the Deputy Emir at the opening ceremony.
The event, organised for the first time in the region, is dedicated to the development of world-class education and research in the region. It aims to help Times Higher Education magazine develop a new university ranking for the Mena region.
About 22 presidents of universities from around the world are expected to attend the event that will feature a series of discussions on proposals for a new Times Higher Education Mena Universities ranking with a bespoke range of metrics for the region; sessions on university leadership, international research collaboration, industry-university collaboration and teaching excellence; and workshops on consultative rankings.
Professor Sheikha Abdulla al-Misnad, QU president, said: “In partnering in this important forum, Qatar University is reinforcing its position as a leader in academic and research excellence in the Gulf and Mena region to advance the dialogue on the opportunities and challenges in the higher education sector.
The summit is an invaluable opportunity for us to come together to discuss ways to further energise this movement and to reflect the region’s academic and research aspirations and priorities.”
QU vice-president and chief academic officer Dr Mazen Hasna said: “International ranking is an important element of a university’s development, progress and international reputation. In the Mena region, universities need to develop a deeper understanding of the ranking methodologies so that they can improve practices that will positively affect their ranking.”
THE World University Rankings editor Phil Baty said: “The first-ever THE Mena Universities Summit is a wonderful and timely opportunity to bring global thought leaders together, to share good practice and forge new partnerships, and to help ensure that the great vision is fully realised. We are delighted to be able to bring together, in partnership with Qatar University, some of the world’s most exciting thinkers – across teaching, research, business and policymaking – for high-level debate, sharing best practice and networking under our prestigious summit series.”
The Times Higher Education World University Rankings are the most widely-referenced and highly-regarded of the global university rankings systems, employing 13 separate performance indicators covering the full range of an institution’s key missions such as teaching, research, knowledge transfer and international activity.
