Ajman University’s International Exchange Programs Thrive Despite Covid-19 Challenges
Despite global travel restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Ajman University succeeded in providing meaningful international experiences to students through exchange programs, study tours and international collaborations in 2021. Significantly, Ajman University has tied-up with reputed US universities - Rutgers University and Temple University - to facilitate exchanges on multiple levels, including student and faculty exchange programs and dual degrees. Here’s a quick update on AU’s international collaborations and exchanges.
Exchange program
In the Fall 2021 semester, AU welcomed 9 inbound exchange students from France, Taiwan and Germany. In the Spring 2022 semester, AU will be hosting 15 inbound exchange students from countries including France, USA, India, Russia and Belgium. The inbound students are joining several different programs in the colleges of Business Administration, Engineering and IT, and Mass Communication.
Winter Study Tour
For the academic year 2021-2022, AU is organizing the Winter Study Tour program 2022 (WST 2022). The tour program is a blend of industrial visits to governmental and non-governmental institutions, seminars by subject experts, entertainment activities, sightseeing trips and visits to one of the most anticipated events in recent times, Expo 2020.
The program has 3 concentrations; Business, Engineering & IT, and Architecture.
A total of 96 students from various countries across the world have registered for the WST 2022. The participants are from countries including Croatia, Netherlands, Malaysia, Germany, India, France, Belgium, Lebanon and Oman.
The first tour kicked off on January 3 and is set to conclude on January 9 with the certificates award ceremony. 20 international students, including some of AU’s Spring 2022 exchange students, participated in it.
The second tour will be organized between 23-30 January and will attract a large number of students.
Rutgers and Temple University Tie-ups
AU has developed geographically diverse strategic partnerships with prominent international institutions all around the globe. One such partnership is with Temple University (TU) of the Commonwealth, USA. AU and Temple University engineering colleges have built strong ties-up through a variety of student and faculty exchange programs and joint/dual degree programs. Each semester several AU engineering students spend a semester or two as exchange students at TU. On the other hand, AU and TU colleges of Dentistry have signed several cooperation agreements and are working towards activating it.
AU has recently signed a cooperative Education Program Agreement to Establish a 3+2 Bachelor/Master Dual Degree Program with Rutgers University, the state university of New Jersey, USA. The dual-degree program will offer AU’s Electrical Engineering undergraduate students the opportunity to earn a master's degree from Rutgers University, in addition to the bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from Ajman University. To achieve this, the students will need to complete six semesters of the usual eight-semester Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering program at Ajman University. The coursework of the final year of study toward the Ajman University Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering degree, will be completed at Rutgers. Students will have to opt from an approved list of courses, equivalent to those at Ajman University, while being simultaneously enrolled in the first year of study toward Rutgers University’s Master of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering degree.
One of the main benefits of the program, in addition to getting an Ms. Degree from a reputable university in the US, is that AU students will complete their Bs. and Ms. studies in a total duration of five years, instead of six.