University College of Bahrain

The University College of Bahrain (herein referred to as “UCB”) was founded in 2002 by Dr. Khalid Al-Khalifa. UCB is licensed by the Ministry of Education of the Kingdom of Bahrain as a provider of higher education. UCB is a new and private university designed to provide an international teaching and learning experience entirely conducted in the English language, particularly specializing in Business Administration, Communication and Information Technology (IT).

UCB provides a rigorous curriculum (based on a semester credit hour system) in the American liberal arts tradition. Many students are drawn from the Gulf Region with about 55% female intake and an aggressive and ambitious development program is in place to grow student numbers and facilities over the next 10 years. UCB is located in its own self-contained and walled purpose-built campus in Saar. To date, UCB has graduated over 700 students from its Undergraduate and Postgraduate business and other programs. These alumni are now active members of their business communities.

The vision of UCB is to be the leading private, not-for-profit, provider of tertiary level education in the fields of Management; Business-related subjects; and Communications Technology, in the Kingdom of Bahrain and one of the leading such providers in the GCC countries. It seeks to achieve sustained local, regional and international recognition as a modern, quality-enhanced learning and teaching environment training graduates for successful competitive entry into the knowledge economy anywhere in the global economy.

The Mission of the University College of Bahrain is to provide Bachelor’s and higher degree level courses in the fields of Business Administration, Information Technology, and Communications concomitant with its ability to provide an internationally benchmarked level of education as permitted by its evolving staff and facilities, resources, serving students in Bahrain and the Middle East region.

UCB’s Vision and Mission Statement emphasise:

• Aiming for national and regional educational leadership;
• Alignment of educational programs with global standards while maintaining regional relevance;
• Ensuring that graduates learn skills that will transform them into leaders in their professions.

UCB also has a successful MBA Program offered through an evening delivery mode. Through a collaborative support agreement entered into with the Regional External Programs at the American University of Beirut (AUB), UCB was assisted in the development of its academic programs as well as its quality and continuous improvement standards. Rigorous consulting and technical support offered by AUB to UCB draws on the experience of the Olayan School of Business, which is AACSB accredited.

UCB considers it a duty and an obligation that faculty members and senior students perform research activities aiming at serving the Bahraini community. Research work is seen as an integral component of the professional and career development plans for the UCB community.

To fulfill its mission, UCB is committed to cause of seeking new knowledge in all fields of interest to the institution as well as the individual faculty members. UCB encourages it faculty members and students to pursue further knowledge through available means. Research and any creative work is welcome by the UCB administration and appropriate resources will be allocated to support creative initiatives and activities.

UCB encourages academic freedom and seeks to motivate its faculty members to explore any idea which leads to the UCB mission. UCB gives priority to pedagogical and institutional research projects which can benefit the university and the local community as well. Faculty members are advised to work in small teams and to involve their senior students in their research efforts.

UCB sees itself as a teaching institution with a research focus. Research activities of faculty members as well as students will be rewarded in may forms. Distinguished researchers will be given chances to attend and present their works in local, regional and international conferences and seminars. UCB will support the publication of books, monographs, and other scholarly work. Financial rewards will be considered in recognition of excellent researchers as well.

UCB also supports academic staff in pursuing postgraduate courses leading to masters and PhD degrees. On the other hand, academic staff members are encouraged to integrate research skills in their course outlines and intended learning outcomes. Academic research is also linked to the promotion criteria for academic staff.