Dubai, November 12, 2008: Prof. Omar Hefni, President of University of Dubai (UD) welcomed Mr. Larry Hirst at University Campus in Dubai Chamber building. Mr. Hirst is the Chairman of Board of Executives for IBM Europe, Middle East, and Africa. In this visit, he met with the dean and faculty members of the College of Information Technology (CIT), and key heads of different university departments. 

Prof. Hefni, President said: "This visit is highly welcomed and appreciated as it comes after the successfully  launching of Academic Initiative Program partnership with IBM when we signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with IBM Middle East General Manager last June. So far it was a success story as IBM successfully  provided CIT faculty with advanced training on IBM E-Commerce and WebSphere technologies, and a number of IBM experts delivered talks at the university about strategic technology directions such as Service Science, Management and Engineering curriculum, and IBM prominent Cloud Computing Technology". He further added, "We are hopeful for more cooperation and support of university curriculum, students internships and faculty applied research projects as IBM has a number of world class research and technology centers".

Mr. Hirst, IBM Chairman explained how IBM carries its social responsibility toward academia and society. He talked about IBM success stories in the UK to support students through IBM innovative software to learn foreign languages, and explained how IBM supports academia to train students on advanced technologies. He talked about support of faculty research and technology transfer in strategic areas critical to the region such as the conservation of water and the environment. Different faculty members in the meeting exchanged ideas with him about how IBM and University of Dubai academic relation can progress to the next level.

Prof. Hefni presented the IBM Chairman with university gift carrying its logo. The IBM Chairman promised to revisit University of Dubai again to further the academic relationship with university.

-Ends- 

About University of Dubai:
As a corporate academic university in partnership with Dubai Chamber (formerly known as Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry), UD strives to be pre-eminent in providing the highest quality applied learning based on international academic standards, in addition to professional development services to the workforce in both the private and public sectors. UD has two colleges; the College of Business Administration (CBA) and the College of Information Technology (CIT). The CBA offers Bachelor degree in Business Administration (BBA) with specialization in Management, Marketing, Finance & Banking and Accounting. The CIT offers Bachelor degree in Computing Information Systems. All these programs are accredited by the UAE Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research. UD is a member of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), the Accrediting Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) and the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD). UD is working very hard on earning the AACSB and ABET accreditation for its degree programs. Hopefully, when accomplished, UD will be placed on the world map among the best Business and Information Technology Colleges. For more information, please visit www.ud.ac.ae

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© Press Release 2008