Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed witnesses Khalifa University's Class of 2019 graduation ceremony

Abu Dhabi-UAE: Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, His Highness Sheikh Hamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince’s Court and Chairman of Khalifa University’s Board of Trustees, yesterday attended the graduation ceremony of Khalifa University Class of 2019, which included 285 Bachelor’s, Master’s and PhD students.

Others who attended the ceremony included members of Khalifa University Board of Trustees, HE Eng. Hussain bin Ibrahim Al Hammadi, UAE Minister of Education and Cabinet  Member, HE Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of State, Chief Executive Officer, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and Chairman, Masdar, HE Sheikh Abdulla Bin Mohamed Al Hamed, Chairman of Department of Health, HE Eng. Suwaidan Rashed Al Dhaheri, Musanada’s Chief Executive Officer, HE Ali Rashid  Qanas Al Ketbi, Acting Director, Human Resources, Abu Dhabi Government, HE Abdul Munim Al Kindy, Director, Exploration, Development and Production Directorate, ADNOC, and HE Abdulaziz Abdulla Alhajri, Director, Refining and Petrochemicals Directorate, ADNOC, Dr. Nawal Khalifa A Hosany, Deputy Director-General, Emirates Diplomatic Academy, in addition to members of the University’s faculty and staff, the graduates and members of their families.

The ceremony celebrated graduation of a total of 285 students, 14 of which were PhD students, 79 Master’s and 192 Bachelors of Science and Engineering programs. Of the total, 117 were male students and 168 female. The number of UAE nationals totaled 212, while international students were 73.

HH Sheikh Hamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan handed over the degrees to the graduates and congratulated them on the success and graduation from the university with competence and excellence. He wished them continued efforts in furthering their education and enhancing their knowledge gained through research and keeping up with the latest advances, in their respective fields of study.

His Highness Shaikh Hamed stressed that Khalifa University, thanks to the wise directives of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, and the support of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has enjoyed prestigious ranking both regionally and internationally through its distinguished academic programs and advanced research programs. He also pointed out that achieving these milestones will continue to further cement the University’s position to be among the top in the world.

In his speech, Dr. Arif Sultan Al Hammadi, Executive Vice President, Khalifa University, expressed his gratitude to His Highness Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the UAE, for his wise leadership, and HH Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, for his role in bringing about a qualitative leap not only in Khalifa University but also in the education and research sector in the country in general.

Dr. Arif Sultan Al Hammadi said: “We are grateful to the University’s Board of Trustees, headed by His Highness Shaikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, for their time, efforts, leadership, and  guidance that put the University in an advanced position in research and innovation, in the fields of science, engineering and technology.”

He added: "Over the last few years, Khalifa University has played a pivotal role in supporting the country's key economic sectors by providing human capital equipped with required competencies in innovation and science. The university has also been collaborating directly with various institutions in these sectors to produce research aimed at upgrading local industries to international standards, thereby supporting research and development as well as finding solutions for improving performance, reducing costs and thus achieving greater returns.”.

Citing more specific examples of the role of research at Khalifa University in supporting the country's economy, Dr. Al Hammadi made special mention of the ones achieved by researchers at the Emirates ICT Innovation Center (EBTIC) , the Masdar Institute and the Petroleum Institute and Khalifa University Center for Biotechnology, and other research projects that have helped the University achieve a large number of patents for the UAE, which aim to support the economy, thus bringing the University top rank in “research” and “Industry Income”, among other universities in the Arab world according to the globally respected Times Higher Education ranking organization.”

During the ceremony, Mechanical Engineering graduate Sara Mohammed Al Muhairi, delivered the graduates’ speech.

In academic rankings, for the third year in a row, Khalifa University ranked first in the country, and the 32^nd among Asian universities, while remaining among the top 200 for Engineering & Technology subjects in the Times Higher Education (THE) rankings. It is also placed among the top 31% of the 1,011 global institutions assessed by the 2019 Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings.

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About Khalifa University of Science and Technology

The Khalifa University of Science and Technology merges the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research and the Petroleum Institute into one world-class, research-intensive institution, producing world leaders and critical thinkers in applied science and engineering. The Khalifa University of Science and Technology endeavors to be a catalyst to the growth of Abu Dhabi and the UAE’s rapidly developing knowledge economy as an education destination of choice and a global leader among research intensive universities.

For more information, please visit: http://www.ku.ac.ae/ 

© Press Release 2019