With the Attendance of the Prime Minister-designate, the University Celebrates the First Batch of Ph.D. Students in Business

The ceremony of handing over the acceptance letters in the doctoral program was attended by the Chairman of the Board of Directors Dr. Yousef Asfour, the President of the University Prof. Ali Zidan Abu Zuhri, the Dean of Faculty of Graduate Studies Dr. Abdul Rahman Abu Libdeh, the Academic Adviser Prof. Walid Deib, members of the Board Mrs. Sabah Asfour, Mr. Osaid Asfour, Mr. Bahaa Asfour, and former Minister of Education and Higher Education Dr. Khawla Al-Shakhshir, the former University President Prof. Dr. Mahmoud Abu Mwais, the VP for Administrative and Financial Affairs,  Mr. Faleh Abu Arrah, also members of faculty and administrative staff and the accepted students in the doctoral program and their families.

Dr. Mohammad Ashtayyeh the Prime Minister congratulated the accepted students and their families saying that: “The PhD program in Business is a new and unique program in Palestine to add quality value to the programs offered by the university in the bachelor's and master's degrees”.

He added, saying that our message is a message of hope, steadfastness and challenge. The same message of the President Mahmoud Abbas who stands with his people facing the financial war by Israel and USA on the Palestinians, and from here we confirm what the Presidents declared that if we only have a penny left we won’t give up our prisoners, martyrs' families, and all those who sacrificed for this country and the next stage will address and treat all the piled negativities.

He also added that Palestine invests in humans and AAUP is a unique model of many success stories. Dr. Yousef Asfour and his partners in the university board are a national and honorable model of investors in the educational sector. What we see today is an evidence of their great efforts during the past years both in the university’s main campus in Jenin, and in Ramallah campus along with the distinguished Faculty of Graduate Studies and its programs, students, Faculty and administrative members.

Dr. Ashtayyeh assured what distinguishes this Ph.D. program, is the joint cooperation with Indiana University, Pennsylvania – USA, and its strategic relation with AAUP. We commend these partnerships with European, American and Asian universities, because we want to learn the best from them, to convey and apply their outstanding experiences in education in our homeland, Palestine, to address and treat all the negativities in our lives.

We hope all the success for the students in the coming stage, and the day to grant them the Ph.D. certificate and their thesis will come as we and their families will be proud of this success.

The University President Prof. Ali Zeidan Abu Zuhri said that the ambition of Arab American University is great. It will never stop at thirteen master's programs and doctoral programs. Today, we are celebrating the acceptance of the first batch of students. We are working to develop programs in bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees. There will be another PhD in Engineering and Information Technology in partnership with local universities.

He added that the university seeks through its communications and international relations to develop modern international and advanced programs from long-standing universities to meet the Palestinian market needs and opening them through our university for all those who wish to enroll in these programs without the need to travel outside Palestine. Where the student can complete his studies between his family and on top of his work and also receive an international standard certificate.

Dr. Abu Zuhri assured that the PhD program in Business is the first of its kind in Palestine, and the output expectations of this program will be outstanding and leading through competent international and local professors. He also recommended that students are to work hard because it’s a global program and is required lots of effort in researching, studying, good planning to obtain this Ph.D. certificate and to achieve his goals and serve his country.

In his speech the Dean of Graduate Studies Dr. Abdulrahman Abu Lebda congratulated the students who were accepted in the PhD program. He said that the PhD program in Business was approved by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and implemented in partnership with Indiana University. The student will receive two certificates, one from Arab American University and the second from Indiana University, as the student will also receive modern education, outstanding knowledge, academic and research skills, and the development of critical thinking.

He assured that the Faculty of Graduate Studies is taking stepping stones towards greatness, where it contains 13 master programs and a Ph.D. program and also contains 800 students. It is seeking to develop more unique programs in the future.

Abdullah Murrar one of the accepted Ph.D. students, in his speech and on behalf of the other students said, “It is a great honor to be one of the first batch of PhD students in business with the cooperation of Indiana Universit, we have high ambition and we are eager to start studying this program. We all have goals and hopes to achieve in our homeland Palestine, and between our families who are our biggest supporter in all stages of our lives”.

He added, “We thank AAUP for providing the opportunity for us to obtain the Ph.D. certificate in Palestine without the need to travel aboard, or leaving our jobs and families, we hope that the day of our graduation ceremony comes and we have finished all requirements of the Ph.D. certificate to be proud of us and build our future and serve our county. 

At the end of the ceremony the students received their acceptance letters for the Ph.D. program, the students are:

Rola Abdel Al-Razeq Jarrar, Rachid Nidal Sabri, Bara Yousef Asfour, Nili Yousef Al Qasas, Salamih Marwan Deaibes, Abdullah Naser Murrar, Ahmed Mohammed Al Masri, Manar Ghazi Abu Al Sbaa, Lubna Hussain Shiokhi, Haneen Saed Haifa.