Founded in 1997 by His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qassimi, Member of the Supreme Council of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Sharjah, the university was envisaged by His Highness as a leading educational institution in the Gulf region. Consciously based upon American institutions of higher education, AUS is thoroughly grounded in Arab culture and is part of a larger process of the revitalization of intellectual life in the Middle East. We are an independent, not-for-profit coeducational institution that is proud of its role as a leading comprehensive coeducational university, serving students from the region and around the world.

AUS is accredited by the Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, 215 662 5606). It is licensed in the United States by the Department of Education of the State of Delaware. The university is also licensed by the UAE Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, and all undergraduate and graduate programs have been awarded either full or initial accreditation. All six of the bachelor's degree programs in our College of Engineering are accredited by ABET, http://www.abet.org. of the United States. The Bachelor of Architecture program of the College of Architecture, Art and Design is accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) of the United States. This is the first program outside of North America to receive this prestigious accreditation. NAAB is the only organization authorized to accredit professional degree programs in architecture in the United States. The Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) as well as the Master of Business Administration (MBA) and Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) degrees offered by the School of Business and Management are accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).