AUC’s National Accreditation Reaffirmed

AUC has been reaffirmed for its national accreditation with the National Authority for Quality Assurance and Accreditation of Education (NAQAAE).

NAQAAE was founded to enhance the quality of education in Egypt by developing an integrated system to assure education quality. AUC was the first University in Egypt to receive the NAQAAE accreditation in 2010, with additional school- and department-level accreditation for the School of Sciences and Engineering and Department of Management within the School of Business. With this reaffirmation, AUC maintains its status as both a nationally accredited University as well as an American-accredited University with the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE).

“Maintaining the MSCHE as well as the NAQAAE accreditation for years ensures that AUC is sustaining quality education and service based on Egyptian and international standards,” said Provost Ehab Abdel-Rahman. “It validates our hard work, confirms to the public the validity of our programs and positively impacts the educational experience and future prospects of our students.”

The reaffirmation process was a rigorous self-assessment coordinated by the Office of Strategy Management and Institutional Effectiveness (SMIE), which was responsible for leading and facilitating the institutions accreditation efforts throughout the process.

“In higher education, institutional accreditation promises a standard of excellence,” attested Iman Megahed ’90, ’92, AUC's chief knowledge and strategy officer. “Accreditation is a transformative process for universities, as it supports the institution’s mission and allows it to provide students with the quality educational experience they deserve.”

An Accreditation Steering Committee -- co-chaired by Professor Ezzat Fahmy, construction engineering; Professor Basil Kamel, architecture; and Associate Professor Atta Gebril, applied linguistics -- worked diligently with a representative group of AUC faculty and staff members in developing the self-study report and providing evidence of AUC’s compliance with NAQAAE accreditation standards. This successful reaffirmation process was under the guidance and leadership of Provost Ehab Abdel-Rahman in coordination with AUC Counselor Ashraf Hatem. The process concluded with a three-day visit to AUC’s campus by a committee of experts in higher education in order to observe AUC’s congruence with its self-study and meet with representatives from different constituents and stakeholders. The committee provided a thorough report, which included recommendations for areas within the University that can be further enhanced.

“The self-assessment process ensures, as we move into the future, that we continuously improve and advance the University,” explained Heba Fathelbab (MA ‘10), senior director of assessment and accreditation at the Office of Strategy Management and Institutional Effectiveness. “The reaffirmation of accreditation process is a lot of hard work, but it is an excellent way to ensure that AUC remains relevant and provides a unique educational experience for its students.”