Dear AUIS Community:
On this lovely fall day, welcome to American University of Iraq, Sulaimani (AUIS). It is exciting to greet our returning students, faculty and staff, and to welcome new friends who join us for the first time on our beautiful campus.
Our new Vice President, Academic Affairs begins his first semester at AUIS. In addition to his superb teaching, administrative, and research credentials, Dr. Wolfgang Hinck has a very personal understanding of how hard work and perseverance can overcome obstacles and lead to success. We are fortunate to have Dr. Wolfgang aboard as we pursue increased academic excellence and international accreditation under our Five-Year Plan. A significant re-accreditation milestone takes place this fall with a site visit from the Commission on English Language Program Accreditation (CEA). AUIS is the only university in Iraq with CEA accreditation.
Our Engineering Department has been energized by new faculty, including a new Department Chair, and by the introduction of a unique dual-degree program with the University of Arizona, ranked #52 among all universities worldwide by the Center for World University Rankings. For the first time, students from Iraq and the Kurdistan Region will be able to receive U.S.-accredited undergraduate engineering degrees with the lower cost and greater convenience of living close to home.
A new research center, the AUIS Entrepreneurship Initiative (AEI), has been formally approved. It joins three very active existing centers, the Center for Gender and Development Studies (CGDS), the Kashkul Center for Arts and Culture, the Center for Archaeology and Cultural Heritage (CACHE), and our flagship Institute for Regional and International Studies (IRIS). These centers attract funding from other countries, and support regionally-important research as well as new courses and student internships.
Our Academic Preparatory Program (APP) has a new look this fall, with shorter, more intense terms that dramatically reduce the total cost and time required for students to begin their undergraduate studies. New degrees in Law, Software Engineering, and Translation offer students fascinating new options for majors and elective courses.
I am also very pleased that not-for-profit, independent AUIS continues to offer its graduates outstanding opportunities for employment and graduate study, as evidenced by the 2018 Undergraduate Alumni Survey Report.
AUIS is the only Iraqi member of the Association of American International Colleges and Universities (AAICU), and is the first private university to be recognized by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research in both Erbil and Baghdad. We are proud of all that AUIS has achieved so far, and I am very proud of all of you.
With warm regards,
Bruce Walker Ferguson, A.B., Ed.M., M.B.A., J.D.
President