History
The institution was established as the College of Education by a decree from the Emir of Qatar in 1973. The college began with a total of 150 students, including 93 women and 57 men and was later expanded to become the University of Qatar in 1977 with four new colleges : Education, Humanities & Social Sciences, Sharia & Law & Islamic Studies, and Science. Three years later, the College of Engineering was established. By then, the number of enrolled students was 2,600. This was followed by the establishment of the College of Business & Economics in 1985. The new colleges prompted a large expansion of the university campus, which was overseen by Aga Khan Award for Architecture recipient Kamal El Kafrawi. By Fall Semester 2005 / 2006, the number of registrants for study at Qatar University had reached 7660 male and female students, equaling almost 1/6 of the eligible Qatari population.
As of 2011, there are seven colleges: College of Education, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Shariah and Islamic Studies, College of Engineering, College of Law, College of Business & Economics, and College of Pharmacy. The new College of Pharmacy was established in 2006, with its first intake of BSc (Pharm) students in 2007.
- Reform Project (2003–2007)
The Qatar University Reform project was an undertaking which evaluated and restructured the university administration and direction to enhance the quality of instruction and place emphasis on research. The Reform was initiated in 2003, led by His Highness Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, QU President Dr. Sheikha Al Misnad, and the newly established Office of Institutional Research and Planning (OIPD). It focused primarily on three principles; “Autonomy”, “Decentralization”, and “Accountability”. While the University had previously operated as a government entity, the reformed institution would be an autonomous body governed by a board of regents who reported to the Emir. This fundamental change in approach now allowed the University to manage its own finances, stated objectives & vision, and personnel and decentralization within the university granted similar financial and personnel control to respective colleges, departments and programs.
Academically, the Reform resulted in the establishment of offices such as the Student Learning Support Center (SLSC) and Student Counseling Center (SCC). Additional construction was also undertaken to ensure accessibility of university facilities by handicapped persons. A new newsletter, Tawasol, also began publication in the university
The reform also changed the title of the university from “University of Qatar” to “Qatar University” with a new slogan; “Qatar University, Changing for You” and a new university logo.
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