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King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST; ar, جامعة الملك عبد الله للعلوم و التقنية ') is a
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research university A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are the most important sites at which knowledge production occurs, along with "intergenerational kn ...
located in Thuwal,
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Ara ...
. Founded in 2009, the university provides research and graduate training programs in
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...
as the official
language of instruction A medium of instruction (plural: media of instruction, or mediums of instruction) is a language used in teaching. It may or may not be the official language of the country or territory. If the first language of students is different from the offic ...
. KAUST is the first mixed-gender university campus in Saudi Arabia. In 2013, the university was among the 500 fastest growing research and citation records in the world. In the 2016
Nature Index The Nature Index is a database that tracks institutions and countries and their scientific output since its introduction in November, 2014. Each year, Nature Index ranks the leading institutions (which can be companies, universities, government agen ...
Rising Stars, the university ranked 19th in the world of the fastest rising universities for high quality research output. In 2019 KAUST is ranked 8th fastest rising young universities (aged 50 and under) for their research output since 2015, as measured by fractional count (FC).


History

In 2006, Ali Al-Naimi chaired a
Saudi Aramco Saudi Aramco ( ar, أرامكو السعودية '), officially the Saudi Arabian Oil Company (formerly Arabian-American Oil Company) or simply Aramco, is a Saudi Arabian public petroleum and natural gas company based in Dhahran. , it is one of ...
team to undertake the building and planning of the academics. Nadhmi Al-Nasr was chosen to lead the project. They employed the Washington Advisory Group's Frank H. T. Rhodes and
Frank Press Frank Press (December 4, 1924 – January 29, 2020) was an American geophysicist. He was an advisor to four U.S. presidents, and later served two consecutive terms as president of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences (1981–1993). He was the au ...
to design the academic structure,
SRI International SRI International (SRI) is an American nonprofit scientific research institute and organization headquartered in Menlo Park, California. The trustees of Stanford University established SRI in 1946 as a center of innovation to support economic ...
to develop the four research institutes, and the architectural firm of HOK for the campus master plan, which included wind towers and solar panels. The location of the campus at Thuwal included 16.4 sq km on land and 19.6 sq km of
marine sanctuary Marine protected areas (MPA) are protected areas of seas, oceans, estuaries or in the US, the Great Lakes. These marine areas can come in many forms ranging from wildlife refuges to research facilities. MPAs restrict human activity for a conser ...
offshore. Ground breaking took place in Oct. 2007, and 178 scholarships were awarded in Jan. 2008. KAUST officially opened on September 23, 2009 at an inauguration ceremony, where
King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ar, عبدالله بن عبدالعزيز آل سعود ''ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al ʿAzīz Āl Saʿūd'', Najdi Arabic pronunciation: ; 1 August 1924 – 23 January 2015) was King of Saudi Arabia, King and Pri ...
gave a speech where he stated that places like the University that "embrace all people are the first line of defence against extremists". The University initially received a $10 billion endowment. Upon opening, the University admitted 400 students from over 60 countries and 70 faculty. The campus is home to Shaheen, Asia's fastest supercomputer at the time of its commissioning.


Campus


Description

The University's core campus, located on the
Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...
at Thuwal, is sited on more than , encompassing a marine sanctuary
museum
and research facility. KAUST is the first mixed-gender university campus in Saudi Arabia. Saudi authorities hope the mixed-gender center will help modernize the Kingdom's deeply conservative society. The
religious police Religious police are any police force responsible for the enforcement of religious norms and associated religious laws. Most religious police in modern society are Islamic and can be found in countries with large Muslim population, such as Saudi ...
do not operate on-site. Women are allowed to mix freely with men and they are not required to wear
veil A veil is an article of clothing or hanging cloth that is intended to cover some part of the head or face, or an object of some significance. Veiling has a long history in European, Asian, and African societies. The practice has been prominent ...
s in the coeducational classes. KAUST was Saudi Arabia's first
LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a green building certification program used worldwide. Developed by the non-profit U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), it includes a set of rating systems for the design, construction ...
certified project and is the world's largest LEED Platinum campus. Designed by international architecture firm
Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum HOK, formerly Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum and legally HOK Group, Inc., is an American design, architecture, engineering, and urban planning firm, founded in 1955. As of 2018, HOK is the largest U.S.-based architecture-engineering ...
, it was also chosen by the
American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to s ...
(AIA) Committee on the Environment (COTE) as one of the 2010 Top Ten Green Projects. The university library received the 2011 AIA/ALA Library Building Award for accomplishments in library architecture.


Research

KAUST organizes its research teams across three academic disciplines, 12 research centers and individual faculty labs. KAUST focuses its research around the areas of food and health, water, energy, environment and the digital domain.


Academic divisions


Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering Division

Research in the Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering Division (BESE) is organized around six focal areas: environmental systems; epigenetics; functional biology; genomics; imaging/structural biology; and marine science.


Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering Division

Research in the Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering Division (CEMSE) is clustered into four main areas: * Electrical engineering, including the development of communication networks; CMOS integrated circuits; electronic and optics/photonics devices; micro-electro-mechanical systems; various types of sensors, measurement and detection devices; as well as functional- and nano-materials. * Mathematical analysis, including modeling and simulations with applications to physical, chemical, biological and environmental processes; materials science; oil exploration and reservoir management. * Computer science and big data, including bioinformatics; and visual and extreme computing. * Statistics and data science, including climate science, environmental statistics, and biostatistics.


Physical Sciences and Engineering Division

Research in the Physical Sciences and Engineering Division (PSE) includes areas such as theoretical physics and physical chemistry; catalysis and bioengineering; polymers and composites; energy production, storage and conversion; water purification and environmental protection; novel materials, nanodevices and systems; sensors and smart devices for the detection of pollutants and the purification of air, water, and food; earth sciences, mechanics and geomechanics; oil exploration and recovery; and CO2 sequestration.


Research centers

Research in the Academic Divisions is driven by independent faculty labs and 12 Research Centers.


Distinguished professors

* Mohamed-Slim Alouini - Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering * Jean-Marie Basset - French chemist, Professor of Chemical Science at KAUST. * Jean Fréchet - French-American chemist, Professor of Chemical Science and Senior Vice-President for Research, Innovation and Economic Development. * Nina Federoff - American biologist, Professor Emerita. * Marc G. Genton - Professor of Statistics at KAUST * Takashi Gojobori - Japanese molecular biologist, Professor of Bioscience and Associate Director of the Computational Bioscience Research Center. * David E. Keyes - Professor of Applied Mathematics and Computational Science, Director of the Extreme Computing Research Center, and Senior Associate to the President


Postgraduate programs


Master's

The Master of Science (M.S.) program at KAUST can be taken in one of the 16 available disciplines. It is expected that students complete the degree in 18 months and may be completed with or without a thesis component. Admission to the M.S. program requires the satisfactory completion of an undergraduate science degree in a relevant or related area, such as engineering, mathematics or the physical, chemical and biological sciences.


Doctor of Philosophy

The Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) program at KAUST can be taken in one of the 16 available disciplines. It typically takes three to four years to complete. Admission to the Ph.D. program requires the satisfactory completion of a master's degree in science in a relevant or related area, such as engineering, mathematics or the physical, chemical and biological sciences.


M.S. / Ph.D. Program

The M.S./Ph.D. program allows students to apply for the Ph.D. program after completing a bachelor’s degree. The program typically takes four to five years to complete.


Postgraduate Diploma

KAUST offers a one year Postgraduate Diploma in Digital Industrial Design, Physical Science and Engineering, and Bioscience. Each program is made up of soft skill, experimental, theoretical and entrepreneurship courses as well as a capstone experience.


Internship programs


Visiting Student Research Program

The VSRP is a three to six month internship program available for 3rd/4th year undergraduate or master's students. During the program, students will work under the guidance of KAUST faculty mentors on a current research project. Students accepted into the program receive a monthly stiped as well as having their accommodation, health insurance and travel costs covered.


Visiting Student Program

The Visiting Student Program (VS) is a flexible program allowing 3rd/4th year undergraduate or master's students to work directly with KAUST faculty members. Its length can range from a few days to several months. Students accepted into the program normally receive a monthly stiped as well as having their accommodation, health insurance and travel costs covered.


Program disciplines

* Applied Mathematics and Computational Science * Applied Physics * Bioengineering * Bioscience * Chemical Engineering * Chemistry * Computer Science * Earth Science and Engineering * Electrical and Computer Engineering * Energy Resources and Petroleum Engineering * Environmental Science and Engineering * Marine Science * Material Science and Engineering * Mechanical Engineering * Plant Science * Statistics


Admissions

While there is no minimum academic entry requirement, those admitted typically have strong grade profiles and clear research interests. Applicants are also required to meet English language requirements for entry unless they qualify for an exemption.


Fellowship

Every student who is admitted receives the KAUST Fellowship. This fellowship covers the cost of a student’s tuition fees, accommodation, health insurance, and relocation costs as well as giving the student a monthly stiped.https://admissions.kaust.edu.sa/phd-fellowship.html KAUST Fellowship


See also

*
House of Wisdom The House of Wisdom ( ar, بيت الحكمة, Bayt al-Ḥikmah), also known as the Grand Library of Baghdad, refers to either a major Abbasid public academy and intellectual center in Baghdad or to a large private library belonging to the Abba ...
*
Education in Saudi Arabia Public education—from primary education through college—is open to every Saudi citizen. The second largest governmental spending in Saudi Arabia goes for education. Saudi Arabia spends 8.8% of its gross domestic product on education, which i ...
* Shaheen (supercomputer) * List of things named after Saudi Kings


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:King Abdullah University of Science and Technology Universities and colleges in Saudi Arabia 2009 establishments in Saudi Arabia Educational institutions established in 2009 English as a global language Private universities and colleges in Saudi Arabia Science and technology in Saudi Arabia Scientific organisations based in Saudi Arabia World Digital Library partners Mecca Province Postgraduate schools