Since its establishment more than 40 years ago, Qatar University (QU) has been working to provide distinguished education. During this journey, it has provided various sectors of the country with Qatari cadres, in addition to its contribution to promoting research, innovation, and progress toward a knowledge-based economy in line with Qatar National Vision 2030.
The university is committed to fulfilling its mission with the highest international standards, to ensure the quality of education provided. It relies on several strategies, including focusing on what is known as the international ranking of universities and international academic credits for colleges and programmes.
Both strategies obligate QU and other academic institutions around the world to adopt precise standards related to the academic programmes themselves in terms of keeping up with new developments and their relevance to the labour market, in addition to teaching methods and curricula used. This is necessary so that academic institutions reach their goals.
The academic expansion at the university highlights its ability to respond swiftly to national needs and its ability to keep pace with academic developments on the global scene. The number of its colleges currently reached 10 which are: the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Business and Economics, the College of Education, the College of Engineering, the College of Health Sciences, the College of Law, the College of Medicine, the College of Pharmacy, the College of Sharia and Islamic Studies and the College of Dental Medicine. Those colleges offer dozens of programmes in the undergraduate stage, in addition to 54 postgraduate programmes between MA and PhD and postgraduate degrees in all fields and disciplines.
Besides, QU worked tirelessly to obtain academic credits for the university’s programmes from prestigious international institutions, as the university sought to obtain accreditation for several colleges such as the colleges of engineering, management, economics, education, and pharmacy, in addition to several programmes in the College of Arts and Sciences.
In 2019, the Bachelor of Science in Statistics programme at the College of Arts and Sciences received accreditation from the British Royal Statistical Society (RSS) and the Bachelor of Science in Chemistry obtained accreditation from the Canadian Society of Chemistry (CSC), and the Bachelor of Science in Environmental Sciences programme received accreditation from the Institution of Environmental Sciences (IES), and the Master of Science programme in Environmental Sciences obtained accreditation from the Committee of Heads of Environmental Sciences (CHES).
The Bachelor of Arts in Media programme received accreditation from the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC) of the US, and the College of Business and Economics obtained accreditation from Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) in the US.
The college has also moved through the required stages that lead to accreditation for its programmes, according to the standards of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).  ABET is a highly recognised and internationally respected accreditor of college and university programmes in applied science, computing, engineering, and technology.    
Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Industrial & Systems Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering programmes in the College of Engineering are accredited by ABET.
The College of Engineering is considered to be one of the first colleges to obtain academic accreditation at Qatar University, starting in October 2004.
Also, the College of Education obtained accreditation for a new set of its educational programs to be added to a previous group that obtained accreditation last year, from established international accreditation institutions.
Concerning international classifications, QU achieved prominent positions in these rankings, as it ranked 276 according to the rankings of QS Quacquarelli Symonds for the world universities for 2020. It became one of the most improved universities in the rankings, jumping 56 places from the last year 2019 when it was 332.
On the research level, QU continuously invests and participates in studies that further science and society. As both a leader in emerging gas technologies and an environmentally-conscious institution, QU’s autonomous research units strive to make an impact on a global scale. The University plans to utilise its findings to amass an intellectual reservoir that will establish a strong knowledge-based economy in Qatar.
QU has a portfolio of established research centres including Center for Advanced Materials (CAM); Environmental Science Centre; Gas Processing Centre; Laboratory Animal Research Centre; Biomedical Research Centre; Qatar Transportation and Traffic Safety Centre; Social and Economic Survey Research Institute; KINDI Centre for Computing Research; National Centre for Educational Development; Early Childhood Centre; Humanities and Social Sciences Centre; Centre for Sustainable Development; Centre for  Entrepreneurship; Gulf Studies Centre; Qatar Mobility Innovation Centre; and Centre for Law and Development.
In light of this research infrastructure, QU launched an ambitious research roadmap that includes national development priorities and several important research successes of global importance. Last year, QU  published more than 1500 research in scientific journals, covering various areas related to the needs of the state and its national priorities.
Furthermore, QU encourages its students and faculty to actively engage in research activities, where preparing and developing quality research is one of the strategic goals of the university. The number of faculty members who have been involved in research during the past two years has reached 866 members, while the number of research contributors has reached 625, or 72%. Research activities included authoring a book, conference papers, or a contribution to a scientific journal.
QU signed during the academic year 2018-2019 several memoranda of understanding (MoUs), agreements and academic partnerships with industrial, governmental, academic, financial and civil society institutions in the State of Qatar, amounting to about 50 internal and external MoUs and agreements.
The most prominent agreements concluded by QU during the current academic year included the launch of a detailed environmental study project for the Doha Corniche, a co-operation agreement with Qatar Islamic Bank, a co-operation agreement with SMEET company (one of Qatari Diar companies) to finance the artificial coral reef project that the university intends to install in multiple places in the Qatari territorial waters, and an agreement with Thales Communications to enhance co-operation between the two parties and establish a research chair in the field of electronic security at the KINDI Center for Computing Research and provide advanced training platform Cyber Range software.
Also, QU signed an MoU with Sidra Medical Centre to work on preparing the next generation of healthcare professionals, an MoU with the Administrative Control and Transparency Authority, an MoU to co-operate in establishing the first Huawei Academy in Qatar, and an MoU with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to enhance co-operation in the field of activities related to the dialogue of civilisations.
The agreements and MoUs concluded by QU also included universities and research centres in various countries around the world, to enhance co-operation in the fields of education and scientific research, exchange of research experiences, and establishment of joint activities.
QU’s achievements in 2019 included developing university facilities and an increase in its programs and numbers of students, which have now reached more than 20,000 students, who are educated in more than 400 buildings, in addition to increasing the number of car parks to reach a total of 8,604 parking spaces.
QU seeks to reinforce its goal of becoming a pioneer in economic and social development in  Qatar, through co-operation and partnerships with governmental, industrial, academic, business and civil society sectors in Qatar and abroad.

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