A Royal Decree has been issued, appointing Prof. Dr. Islam Massad as president of Yarmouk university as of 10 August 2021 for four consecutive years.
The Higher Education Council decided in its session held on Wednesday 4/8/2021 , headed by the Minister of Education, Higher Education and Scientific Research, Prof. Dr. Muhammad Abu Quddis, to approve the placement by appointing Prof. Dr. Islam Massad President of Yarmouk University.
With the issuance of the royal decree, Yarmouk University family extends its sincere congratulations to Professor Dr. Islam Massad, on the occasion of his appointment as President of the University wishing him success in leading the university, promoting its march and achieving its desired aspirations towards a scientific and research excellence.
The President of Yarmouk University, Prof. Nabil Hailat, met with a delegation from the German Embassy in Amman headed by Ambassador Bernhard Kampmann, discussing ways of enhancing scientific and research cooperation between Yarmouk and several German universities.
At the beginning of the meeting, Hailat welcomed the delegation, stressing the interest paid by Yarmouk to strengthening cooperation with various German higher education institutions. He pointed out the deep history of scientific, research and cultural cooperation between Yarmouk and various German universities, as evident in the nine cooperation agreements between the university and certain German universities as well as the three Erasmus-Plus agreements. He then explained that there are 52 Yarmouk faculty members who graduated from German universities and 19 students from Yarmouk who were sent to various German universities during one academic semester. Also, he mentioned that Yarmouk received 15 German students along with 16 faculty members who made scientific visits to the university while 10 faculty members were sent by Yarmouk in form of scientific visits to German universities.
Hailat further reviewed the rise of Yarmouk as one of the international universities that have several academic specializations offered by 15 faculties of scientific, social, human, and medical orientations. In addition, he pointed to the fact that Yarmouk has distinguished scientific centers, such as the Refugees, Displaced Persons and Migration Studies Center and the Language Center that attracts students from all over the world to join the program of Arabic for Non-Native Speakers. Moreover, he said that Yarmouk has a future aspiration to develop doctoral programs in the fields of political science and archeology.
Furthermore, Hailat called on the German embassy to serve as a bridge between Yarmouk and various German universities to enhance cooperation in the field of hosting faculty members specialized in teaching the German language, which is offered as a BA major by the German language program of the Department of Modern Languages at the Faculty of Arts. This calls for, as Hailat said, exchanging scientific visits between faculty members of German universities and Yarmouk, as such visits provide those members with the opportunity to learn about different cultures and novel experiences, in addition to providing students with the opportunity to complete their higher studies in Germany through the many scholarships offered by German educational institutions like DAAD. Finally, Hailat stressed Yarmouk’s readiness for the various types of academic and research cooperation, which positively reflects on the educational environment of the university.
In response, Mr. Kampmann stressed the German Embassy's endeavor to enhance the academic cooperation between Jordanian and German higher education institutions, praising the distinguished level of the educational system in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. He added that such a heritage encourages various countries to enhance their scientific and cultural cooperation with Jordanian educational institutions, pointing out that Jordan is one of the countries that attract international students due to its successful educational system. He also highlighted the need to improve the links between science and industry to seize investment opportunities in the region, for example in the pharmaceutical and medical sectors.
He then said that it is important for all universities and educational institutes to offer specializations and develop study plans to meet the needs of the labor market and bridge the gap between the academia and the market needs. The industrial sector and companies, he explained, are looking for programs that create leaders who can change the way of thinking for the better, stressing the need to develop and update the various scientific and cultural field of study.
Kampmann also affirmed the embassy's readiness to cooperate with Yarmouk University by working on networking Yarmouk with various German universities and helping it to attract faculty members of the German language, in addition to providing short and long-term scholarships for students through the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). He added that such a cooperation includes exchanging scientific visits between Yarmouk University professors and German universities.
Interestingly, the meeting was attended by the Vice Presidents of the University, Prof. Mowaffaq Al-Amoush, Prof. Riyad Al-Momani, the Deans of the Faculties of Arts, Archeology and Anthropology, Dr. Muhammad Bani Doumi, Dr. Hani Hayajneh, the Head of the Department of Modern Languages, Dr. Batoul Muhaisin, and the directors of the Departments of International Relations and Projects and Public Relations and Media, Dr. Ghazi Maqableh, Mr. Mukhles Al-Abeni, the media and cultural officer at the embassy, Leonie Lorenz, and a number of officials from the embassy.
During their visit to the university, the delegation members visited the Jordanian Heritage Museum at the faculty of Archeology and Anthropology, where they listened to a detailed explanation of the exhibition's findings.
Yarmouk University recently held a cooperation agreement with the Irish Dundalk Institute with the aim of establishing a joint bachelor program in the field of hotel management based on the keenness of the Faculty of Tourism and Hotels at the university to enhance relationships with international universities of competence and to establish partnerships in joint teaching and training programs with the most prestigious international universities.
The Dean of the Faculty, Dr. Muhammad Shunnaq, said that the aim of signing this agreement is to provide an opportunity for students studying in the international track to obtain two certificates, one from Yarmouk University and another from the Irish Dandelk Institute. Also, it is to provide students with the opportunity to get their training in the best international hotel facilities and to obtain after passing the last year a work residence in Ireland -through which students can work for twenty hours per week in the hotel and hospitality sector. Finally, Shunnaq stated that graduates of such program may get job offers after graduation with salaries starting from 32,000 euros annually.
Dr. Khalid al-Omari, President of yarmouk University's Board of Trustees decided to assign the Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Mouaffaq Omoush, to carry out the duties of the university’s president, until the issuance of a royal decree appointing Dr. Islam Massad as the university’s president.
While receiving a delegation from the Turkish University of Cankiri within the framework of the Erasmus program, the President of Yarmouk University, Prof. Nabil Hailat, stressed that Yarmouk is unique among other Jordanian universities by offering distinguished academic programs like the media majors and the Bachelor of Arabic Language for Non-Native Speakers program, thus making of itself a destination for many international students wishing to study and complete their higher studies in Jordan.
Hailat stated that YU welcomes the cooperation with the Cankiri University and other Turkish universities through exchanging administrative, academic staff as well as students in line with its strategic plan to strengthen relations with various universities and international institutions. Hailat then pointed out the importance of cooperation in scientific publishing between the professors of the two universities, considering that "Yarmouk and Cankiri" are linked to a memorandum of understanding and two cooperation agreements in the field of students and faculty exchange as well as scientific and research cooperation.
For his part, the Director of the Department of International Relations and Projects, Dr. Ghazi Magableh, presented an explanation about Yarmouk University and its faculties, departments and centers. He then explained that the Cankiri delegation includes 11 faculty members and researchers, indicating that the delegation visited the university campus to know about its facilities, meet the deans of the faculties and heads of departments, and complete the training and teaching programs prepared for them.
It is noteworthy that Yarmouk University during the past few weeks has received 16 academics and researchers from three Turkish academic institutes within the framework of the Erasmus Plus cultural exchange program.
The President of Yarmouk University, Prof. Nabil Hailat, said that Yarmouk University is proud to have graduated more than 180,000 students since its establishment in 1976, emphasizing that the university is dedicating this achievement for Jordanians celebrating the centenary and the 75th independence day of the Kingdom. He added that Yarmouk is also proud that it has instilled ambassadors (graduates) in 77 countries around the world by graduating 13,290 international students from different nationalities and countries in 45 years. This achievement, he explains, shows the university's international heritage and reputation, which attracts the attention of many countries around the world.
Hailat then pointed out that 9557 of those graduates obtained the bachelor degree in various scientific and humanitarian disciplines, 2500 graduates obtained the master degree, 459 graduates obtained the doctorate degree, 703 graduates obtained a diploma, 67 obtained a higher diploma, and 4 obtained the diploma of technology. Moreover, he mentioned that Palestine graduates were the most among the international graduates of Yarmouk University over the past years with 2586 graduates, followed by Malaysia with 2209 graduates, the Sultanate of Oman with 2184 graduates, then the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with 1123 graduates.
Hailat stressed that Yarmouk University attaches special importance to those graduates, as it has allocated a special section for them in the Department of Public Relations and Media, which takes care of their affairs and communicates with them, calling on these graduates to take the initiative to register in the “alumni platform” on the university’s official website through the link: https://alumni.yu.edu.jo/GraduateStudents.aspx. He also pointed out that an assistant dean of students affairs for international students has been appointed to continue paying attention to those graduates, in addition to the Arab and International Students Club in the Deanship of Students Affairs.
The Higher Education Council decided in its session held on Wednesday 4/8/2021 , headed by the Minister of Education, Higher Education and Scientific Research, Prof. Dr. Muhammad Abu Quddis, to approve the placement by appointing Prof. Dr. Islam Massad President of Yarmouk University.
During his meeting with a delegation from the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom in Germany, which included the regional director of the foundation, Dirk Künze, and the director of program development, Mutasim Mahadin, the President of Yarmouk University, Prof. Nabil Hailat, stressed that Yarmouk, according to its strategic plan, is going to become an international university through offering specializations and distinguished academic programs capable of attracting students from different countries of the world and through strengthening its relations with various international institutions and prestigious universities around the world. Thus, he stressed that Yarmouk University welcomes cooperation with Friedrich Naumann Foundation and other international organizations, as working with such institutes benefit the university and enhances the progress of its students in both academic and training terms. ThenHailat pointed out that Yarmouk University works to offer master and doctoral programs specialized in the Middle Eastern studies, expressing the university’s desire to cooperate with Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom, as this will inspire students from outside the Kingdom to join the university.
For his part, Konze stressed the importance of having relationship and permanent communication with Yarmouk University, pointing to the readiness of Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom to cooperate with Yarmouk in various scientific and academic fields in an attempt to develop the skills of its students through the implementation of a number of scientific projects as well as certain training and academic programs such as the current cooperation with the Refugees, Displaced Persons and Forced Migration Studies Center.
Noteworthy here is that the meeting was attended by the Vice President for Academic Affairs, Prof. Mowaffaq Omoush, the Vice President for Administrative Affairs, Prof. Riyad al-Momani, and the Head of Information and Technology Transfer Department in the International Relations and Projects Department, Dr. Saif Athamneh.
Over one million Syrians have been displaced in Jordan for the last ten years. According to new research, many Syrian refugees in Jordan do not yet see themselves returning to Syria within the next two years. Even though the crisis in Syria continues, international support for Syrian refugees in Jordan has already begun to decline.
This situation was the focus of a recent online workshop 28 June organised by Yarmouk University. Field research on the situation of Syrian refugees in Jordan was conducted by the Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI) in Norway and Yarmouk University. as part of the EU funded TRAFIG project (Transnational Figurations of Displacement) project led by BICC (Germany). The TRAFIG project aims to develop alternative solutions to protracted displacement that are tailored to the needs and capacities of displaced people. It examines how local and transnational connectivity, in addition to mobility, can benefit refugees in their everyday life.
The online workshop was attended by 20 stakeholders from among NGOs, civil society and academia and was led by Dr. Fawwaz Al-Momani, director of the project at Yarmouk University.. According to Al-Momani, “besides further exploring how transnational networks can help resolve protracted displacement, there is also a need to discuss the scenarios of voluntary return” for Syrian refugees given the decline of international support and the lack of other durable solutions.
The preparation of scientific competencies in various fields of knowledge, and the production of innovative scientific research aims to serve society by providing exemplary education in an intellectually stimulating university environment.
