AURAK signs a cooperation agreement with Wayne State University

American University of Ras Al Khaimah (AURAK) received an American delegation led by the U.S. Ambassador to the UAE John Rakolta Jr., and U.S. Consul General in Dubai Mr. Philip Frayne, to discuss different aspects of cooperation between the two sides in various academic, scientific, and research fields.

Professor Hassan Hamdan Al Alkim, President of the American University of Ras Al Khaimah (AURAK), presented the most important AURAK achievements during the last 10 years, as well as highlighting areas of cooperation between AURAK and other universities in the United States of America. He also highlighted the accreditations, ratings and rankings that AURAK has recently gained.  Professor Al Alkim called particular attention to the accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) in December 2018 and the overall 5 QS stars rating gained in 2020.

Within the framework of this visit, AURAK signed a cooperation agreement with Wayne State University (WSU), a public research university in Detroit, Michigan, which was represented by its president, Mr. Roy Wilson, who attended the event virtually via video call and signed the agreement with Professor Hassan Hamdan Al Alkim, President of AURAK.

In this regard, U.S. Ambassador to the UAE John Rakolta Jr. said that "one of the most important factors that strengthens the relationship between two countries is promoting people-to-people communication, which can be achieved by creating channels of communication for dialogue to build trust, innovation, and creativity. Therefore, this agreement between the two universities will give students the opportunity to learn from one another and exchange experiences in order to build a sustainable future relationship, based on these principles. “In addition,” he added “it is very important that the cooperation between the two universities expand throughout the region, especially since the United States has hundreds of universities and colleges and we would love to share our expertise with the UAE.”  

Through this agreement, WSU and AURAK aim to establish a UAE – US Higher Education Collaboration Initiative. The funding provided by the U.S. Mission Embassy to the U.A.E. will help both universities expand current collaboration efforts, including student exchange and joint/dual degree programs, while pursuing new initiatives to further connect the campuses, such as joint research, faculty and staff cooperation, and non-degree programs.