AUD and- Autodesk Establish First Academic Cooperation in the Middle East and Africa

AUD Signs MoU with Autodesk at its new Glass House Design Center on Campus

Dubai, April 9th, 2013: The School of Architecture, Art and Design at the American Aniversity in Dubai (AUD) signed an agreement with Autodesk during an inauguration ceremony of the Integrated Computational Design Center (ICDC) Glass House on campus, the first academic cooperation in the region and joint collaboration on research, curriculum development and community outreach in the Middle East and Africa. Dr. Nabyl Chenaf, Dean of the School, comments: "This collaboration is definitely one of the strategic goals of the School and will surely help our students keep up with the cutting-edge technology available in the fields of Architecture, Art and Design. This would have never been achieved without the tireless efforts deployed by Prof. Alex Albani from AUD and Mr. Deepankar Bhattacharyya from Autodesk."

The event initiated with a ribbon cutting ceremony of the center by Dr. Lance de Masi, AUD President, Mr. Elias Bou Saab, AUD Executive Vice President, Mr. George Abraham, Autodesk Education's Senior Manager of Emerging Markets, Dr. Jihad Nader, Provost/Chief Academic Officer, and Dr. Nabyl Chenaf, Dean of the School of Architecture, Art and Design, in the presence of faculty members and students of AUD. "Autodesk cooperates with academic leaders worldwide to enable the next generation of architects, engineers and digital artists to succeed, as well as imagine, design and create a better world," said Mr. Abraham of Autodesk Education. "Through our collaboration with the American University in Dubai, we hope to nurture students' passion for design, and introduce them to technology that reinforces real-world problem-solving skills."

During the ceremony, Laila Ballan, an architecture student, and Erum Kamal, an interior design student, were announced as winners of the Autodesk Revit Architecture 2013 Competition and were awarded iPads, books, and DVDs from Autodesk. The competition gave the participating young architects and interior designers the chance to present their best projects created with Autodesk Revit Architecture software, in terms of accurate and compelling 2D representation and 3D photorealistic renderings.

The new collaboration aims to extend the activities of the AUD ICDC Site where common events will be carried out. Since AUD is already an Autodesk Authorized Certification Center, the objective is to develop cooperation between Autodesk and AUD, and to provide faculty, students and industry practitioners with exposure to world class software, technical curriculum, courseware, workshops, and certification exams.

Moreover, additional areas of collaboration have been stressed upon in the MoU. These include the conduction of the ACI (Autodesk Certified Instructor) and ACE (Autodesk Certified Evaluator) workshops at the new ICDC site. Furthermore, AUD will engage its community in environmental projects, and pave the way for exchange of knowledge between both parties.

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About Autodesk
Autodesk helps people imagine, design, and create a better world. Everyone from students and hobbyists to engineers, architects, design professionals and digital artists uses Autodesk apps, software and services to unlock their creativity, make better products and solve important challenges. For more information visit www.autodesk.com or follow @autodesk .

Autodesk and Revit are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. Autodesk is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document.

About AUD
The American University in Dubai (AUD) is a private, non-sectarian institution of higher learning founded in 1995. It serves UAE nationals and international students who seek world-class career-oriented education. AUD, as an international institution of higher education, encourages global understanding by providing an atmosphere of cultural diversity and opportunities for an international education.

AUD is officially licensed by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research of the United Arab Emirates. The Ministry has accredited the university's programs in International Studies, Business Administration (both undergraduate and graduate), Communication and Information Studies, Engineering, Computer and Information Technology, Architecture, Visual Communication and Interior Design, Education (graduate), and Construction Management (graduate), in addition to a Certificate program in Middle Eastern Studies.

AUD is accredited by the Commission on Colleges (COC) of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) to award Bachelor's and Master's degrees.

AUD is approved to operate by the State of Georgia Nonpublic Postsecondary Education Commission (NPEC).

AUD has received specialized accreditation for its Bachelor's of Business Administration (B.B.A.), and Master's of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree programs in business through the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE). The International Advertising Association (IAA) in New York has accredited the university's undergraduate majors in Marketing Communications and Advertising.

The Civil, Computer, and Electrical Engineering Programs of AUD's School of Engineering are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET. The Bachelor of Science in Computer and Information Technology (B.S.C.I.T.) program is accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of ABET.