University of Aberdeen's AFG College officially opened

The AFG College with University of Aberdeen was officially opened on Monday in the presence of HE the Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani at a special ceremony at the Museum of Islamic Art.

Dr Sheikha Aisha bint Faleh al-Thani, founder and chairperson of the Al Faleh Group, and Prof Sir Ian Diamond, principal and vice chancellor of the University of Aberdeen, co-hosted the opening ceremony.
Other distinguished guests at the event included HE the Minister of Education and Higher Education Dr Mohamed Abdel Wahed Ali al-Hammadi and British ambassador Ajay Sharma. Joining them were representatives from the University of Aberdeen and a number of senior government and industry officials from several Qatar-based organisations.



HE Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser al-Thani is pictured with Sheikh Nawaf bin Nasser al-Thani, Prof Sir Ian Diamond, Dr Sheikha Aisha bint Faleh al-Thani, and Brian Buckley, principal AFG College with the University of Aberdeen at the ceremony.




HE Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani receives a souvenir fromDr Sheikha Aisha bint Faleh al-Thani at the event.


AFG College with the University of Aberdeen recently opened its doors to undergraduate students for degrees in Business Management and Accountancy and Finance.
Dr Sheikha Aisha said, 'We are proud to partner with the University of Aberdeen to offer Qatari nationals and the wider community the opportunity to study a prestigious UK degree in Qatar. Students of the college are offered the same teaching and learning experience as those studying at the university's central campus. They will be taught by Aberdeen faculty and follow the same academic calendar throughout their studies.
'We plan to extend our degree offerings, to include subject disciplines, such as engineering, law and medicine at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. We consider that the partnership between AFG College and the University of Aberdeen is a great achievement as it portrays Qatar's openness for the further development of higher education provision and the educational enrichment of our youth.
Prof Diamond commented, 'As an institution with over 500 years of history we are proud of our past, but we are excited by our future, a key part of which will be our overseas expansion and this partnership is our first overseas campus, a true milestone for the university. We look forward to working with staff and students from Qatar, the wider Gulf region and from around the world, bringing our world class education to the region"
Ambassador Sharma noted, 'British educational institutions are the best in the world and I am pleased to see the strong historic links between the UK and Qatar delivering a British campus here in Doha. Equipping future generations with high quality British education will not only benefit the students but also the future of UK-Qatar relations."
Prof Richard Wells, dean of Transnational Education at University of Aberdeen, maintained, 'We believe we are at the start of a long and fruitful journey for both the University and our partners AFG. The future development of our new campus is the next major milestone towards which we are already working and we look forward to welcoming you all back to an event to celebrate that in 2020.
At the event, Dr Sheikha Aisha presented HE Sheikh Abdullah, HE Dr al-Hammadi and Prof Diamond with commemorative gifts in appreciation of their contribution and support for the development of higher education in Qatar.