Aga Khan University is a non-profit institution and an agency of the Aga Khan Development Network. It was Founded in 1983 as Pakistan's first private university. Starting in 2000, the university expanded to Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, the United Kingdom and Afghanistan.
AKU began life as a health-sciences university. It is among the largest private health-care providers in Pakistan and East Africa. AKU hospitals were the first in those regions accredited by U.S.-based Joint Commission International.
More recently, the university has initiated programmes in teacher education, the study of Muslim civilisations, journalism, early childhood development and public policy. In the near future, the university plans to launch an undergraduate liberal-arts programme to educate future leaders in a wide range of fields and establish additional graduate professional schools.
History
Founded in 1983 by the Prince Aga Khan IV, AKU is one of the Aga Khan Development Network agencies.
1964: The Chancellor announces plans to construct Aga Khan Hospital and Medical College 1980: The contract for the main complex of Aga Khan University Hospital and Medial College was signed in London 1983: Former President of Pakistan presented the Charter of the university to the Chancellor, making it the first private international university in Pakistan; the first class of the university's School of Nursing graduates 1985: Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi inaugurated 1989: The university's medical college's first batch graduates 1994: The Institute for Educational Development, Karachi inaugurated 2001: The Advanced Nursing Studies Programme launched in Uganda 2002: The Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations established in London 2005: Aga Khan Hospital, Nairobi upgraded to Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi 2006: Inaugurated the Institute for Educational Development in East Africa, and the French Medical Institute for Children, managed by AKU, in Kabul 2007: The Examination Board conducts its first Secondary School Certificate examinations 2015: Aga Khan University, Tanzania granted University Charter by the president, Jakaya Kikwete 2012: Founded Graduate School of Media and Communications, Institute for Human Development, and East Africa Institute 2021: Aga Khan University, Kenya granted charter by President Uhuru Kenyatta. 2022-23: Aga Khan University launches the Faculty of Arts and Sciences on the Stadium Road Campus, Karachi, Pakistan. The Inaugural Dean was appointed in September 2022, with the Faculty launching in September 2023.
Academics
The Aga Khan University accounts for 75% of all biomedical research in Pakistan while the remaining 25 percent is shared by all the other institutions. AKU publishes more research articles in peer-reviewed, indexed internationally recognised journals than any other university in Pakistan. Faculty promotions are dependent on publications in indexed journals while most medical students have published by the time they graduate. Undergraduate medical students have published up to 50 research papers in indexed health journals.
It is one of the few universities in Pakistan to provide research facilities to students at the undergraduate level. The university maintains a research office to guide and support research conducted at the university. A University Research Council also funds grants after a competitive review process facilitated by a Grants Review Committee. Particular emphasis is also placed on community related health sciences research. AKU organizes international and national research workshops and seminars. A Health Sciences Research Assembly is held annually in which faculty and students present their research.
The university is a site for NIH clinical trials. The seal (logo) of the Aga Khan University is a visual representation of the principles which underlie the founding of the university. The circular form of the seal has its roots in the rosettes of early Islamic periods. It also symbolizes the world and reflects the internationality of the Aga Khan University. At the centre of the seal is a star or sun representing light – a universal symbol of the enlightenment that education provides. The light is also symbolic of Nur (divine light). The star incorporates 49 points to commemorate the university's founding by Prince Karim Aga Khan, the Forty-Ninth imam of the Ismaili Muslims. The outer ring circumscribes a Quranic Ayat (3:103) rendered in classic thuluth script.