UAEU Bachelor’s Degree Program in Information Technology Granted ABET Accreditation

 

Wednesday, 12 October 2011

Press Release

United Arab Emirates University is pleased to announce that its Bachelor of Science degree program in Information Technology has been granted accreditation by the Computing Accreditation Commission (CAC) of ABET, the most prominent accreditation body based in the USA responsible for accrediting engineering, computing, applied science, and technology degree programs. The accreditation is a culmination of years of careful program development according to international standards, and an 18 month review process by ABET that took place during 2010 and 2011. The decision also extends retroactively to degrees completed starting in Fall 2009.

International accreditation of the Bachelor’s degree program in Information Technology is part of the UAEU’s drive for excellence under the direction of HE Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research and Chancellor of the United Arab Emirates University. HE Sheikh Nahayan has directed all professional programs within the UAE higher education system to seek international accreditation of their programs, to assure students, parents, and employers of the quality of the UAE higher education system.

 

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Prof. Eyad Abed, Dean of the Faculty of Information Technology, congratulated students, parents, faculty members, and staff, as well as the UAE information technology community on this important accomplishment. He stated, “This achievement is the result of years of careful work in developing and aligning our Bachelor’s degree program in Information Technology in accordance with international standards. Over several years and throughout several review cycles, the Faculty of Information Technology at the UAEU revised its curriculum with the aid of accreditation consultants with the goal of meeting ABET accreditation standards in the field of Information Technology. ABET accreditation certifies that our educational program is equipped with mechanisms for continuous monitoring and improvement, and assures that our curriculum model includes the core knowledge areas and experiential learning expected in an IT program.  We hope this will give our students and alumni further pride in their degree and added confidence in their skills as they pursue their chosen careers. Employers of our alumni, who have often expressed their pleasure with our IT graduates, can have confidence that UAEU will continue to produce highly educated and talented IT professionals, ready to contribute to the development of IT in the UAE and beyond.”

ABET accreditation will provide UAEU Information Technology graduates with several advantages; chief among these is the recognition by employers of the quality of UAEU’s Information Technology undergraduate program and the reassurance that the program has been awarded a prominent quality label and met common accreditation standards required of Information Technology programs elsewhere in the world. Graduates from our ABET accredited program will also more easily be able to obtain admission in Master’s and PhD programs worldwide, having graduated.

 
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Prof. Wyatt R. Hume, Provost of UAEU, noted that this is an important step in the university’s efforts to demonstrate the quality of its programs and their competitiveness with those of international peer institutions. He also emphasized that having quality Information Technology degree programs is of critical importance since IT is playing an increasingly important role in all sectors of the economy.

 

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Dr. Abdullah Al Khanbashi, Vice Chancellor of UAEU welcomed the decision by ABET to accredit the UAEU Bachelor’s degree program in Information Technology, and commented that this is another indicator of the quality of the University’s academic programs and the University’s commitment to thoughtful planning and continuous improvement. He also mentioned that he is pleased that the undergraduate degree program of the university’s youngest Faculty, the Faculty of Information Technology, has received accreditation the first time it was reviewed by ABET.

 

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Notes to Editors

 
ABET

  • ABET is a federation of 30 professional engineering societies in the USA. It is an independent non-profit organization, responsible for the specialized accreditation of educational programs in applied science, computing, engineering, and technology.
  • ABET carried out an 18 month review of the Bachelor’s degree program in Information Technology which included a visit by a 3-member review team in the 2010/2011 academic year. This was the first time that the university applied for ABET accreditation for this program.
  • Currently, ABET accredits some 3,100 programs at more than 600 colleges and universities in the USA and abroad. Each year, over 1,500 volunteers from its 30 member societies actively contribute to ABET’s goals of leadership and quality assurance in applied science, computing, engineering, and technology education, serving as program evaluators, committee and council members, commissioners, and Board representatives.
  • ABET accreditation gives assurance that a college or university degree program meets the quality standards established by the profession for which it prepares its students. For example, an accredited Information Technology degree program must meet the quality standards set by the computing profession.
  • The Faculty of IT curriculum follows standard computing curricula models of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) that include IT, released in 2005 with a further revision in 2008. ACM is the largest professional computing institution in the world; one of its services is tailoring curriculum recommendations to the rapidly changing IT landscape. 
  • ABET Accreditation requires standard curriculum guidelines and specific learning outcomes.

 

United Arab Emirates University (UAEU)

  • 21st Century research-based university, providing research solutions to support the UAE and, through its global partners, the wider world
  • Founded in 1976 by HH Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan; the UAE’s first national university
  • Chancellor: His Highness Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research
  • Nine faculties:
    • Business & Economics
    • Education
    • Engineering
    • Food & Agriculture
    • Humanities & Social Sciences
    • Information Technology
    • Law
    • Medicine & Health Science
    • Science
  • 12,279 students Registered  in 2010
  • First PhD program in a UAE national institution commenced in 2009
  • Strong focus on providing specific research solutions and benefits to society − the new model of a 21st Century university, furthering research as part of the global network of discovery and innovation
  • www.uaeu.ac.ae

 

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