The President of Yarmouk University, Professor Islam Massad, patronized the activities of the introductory day of the second phase of the Erasmus Plus program (2021-2027) for the northern region, which was organized by the Erasmus Plus National Office in cooperation with the Department of International Relations and Projects at the university in the presence of the head of the Higher Education Accreditation Commission, Dr. Dhafer Al-Sarayrah, and the former Minister of Health, Dr. Mahmoud Al-Sheyab.
during his opening speech, Massad said that Yarmouk University has always been viewing the international dimension of education as a priority in terms of attracting distinguished faculty members and students from all over the world and cooperating with the most prestigious international academic institutions. He then added that Yarmouk University’s strategic plan for the years 2021 to 2025 seeks to enhance such an international vision by engaging with several international institutions in various cooperative activities concerning the global changes and challenges, such as sustainable development, climate change, and digital transformation. For this purpose, as Massad explained, the university decided to establish and develop an administrative department concerned with international relations and projects and another unit concerned with the quality of education in terms of academic programs and teaching methods.
In return, the Director of the Erasmus Plus National Office, Dr. Ahmed Abu al-Haijaa, reviewed the significance of the program in its first phase (2014-2020) and the value of the European-Jordanian cooperation in the field of higher education. He explained that the program is to enable Jordanian educational institutions to cooperate with their counterpart institutions in 30 European countries through more than 5,700 exchange grants made available to staff and students. He then acknowledged the achievements made by the Erasmus Plus National Office during the first phase, which contributed to the quality of education through the exchange of experiences between Jordanian universities and European partners in terms of the recommendations of the Higher Education Accreditation and Quality Assurance Commission. Furthermore, Abu al-Haijaa pointed out that the Erasmus Plus program 2021-2027 will include new opportunities for the various institutes concerned with educating and training the Jordanian youth.
Noteworthy is that the activities of the induction day included two work sessions: the first was chaired by Dr. Mahmoud al-Shayyab, where Dr. Ahmed Abu Al-Haijaa talked about cooperation between organizations and institutions as well as capacity-building in the field of higher education, while Dr. Ammar al-Maaytah talked about educational exchange programs for students, education and training opportunities for youth, and exchange programs for students and faculty members in the field of vocational education and training. These talks as well as other activities were attended by the Vice President of the University, Professor Muwaffaq Omoush, and a number of deans of faculties, faculty members, researchers, and interested individuals from various Jordanian ministries, authorities, and universities.
