Arab Open University ( AOU ) ( Arabic : الجامعة العربية المفتوحة ) is a non-profit university system in the Arab world . Headquartered in Kuwait , the system is composed of 16 campuses across 9 countries: Ardiya in Kuwait, Riyadh , Jeddah , Dammam , Madinah , Ḥail , Al-Ahsa in Saudi Arabia , Seeb in Oman , A'ali in Bahrain , Amman in Jordan , Al-Bireh in Palestine , Beirut , Antelias , Tripoli in Lebanon , El-Shorouk in Egypt and Khartoum in Sudan .
11-625: The university has a combined student body of 55,170 students, 869 staff members and 77,037 living alumni . The headquarters of the university is located in Kuwait , designated in 2000. The university has a long-standing academic partnership with the United Kingdom's Open University . Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud founded the university in December 2000. Kuwait was chosen to be the headquarters for
22-472: Is a former student or a graduate of an educational institution (school, college, university). According to the United States Department of Education , the term alumnae is used in conjunction with either women's colleges or a female group of students. The term alumni is used in conjunction with either men's colleges , a male group of students, or a mixed group of students: In accordance with
33-493: Is not synonymous with "graduates": people can be alumni without graduating, e.g. Burt Reynolds was an alumnus of Florida State University but did not graduate. The term is sometimes used to refer to former employees, former members of an organization, former contributors, or former inmates. The Latin noun alumnus means "foster son" or "pupil". It is derived from the Latin verb alere "to nourish". Separate, but from
44-475: Is sometimes limited just to graduates rather than all alumni, e.g. at Harvard University . Universities with validation agreements may limit some alumni benefits to graduates who studied at that university rather than at validated institutions. In British English , the terms " old boy " or "old girl" are often preferred for a former pupil of a primary or secondary school, while universities refer to their former students as alumni. Some universities, including
55-539: The University of Cambridge , the University of California, San Francisco and Yale University , include former postdoctoral researchers as alumni, in recognition of the trainee status of such positions. Others, such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology , consider them 'associate alumni', without full access to alumni benefits. Men%27s colleges Too Many Requests If you report this error to
66-664: The chairmanship of Abdulaziz bin Talal Al Saud and the presidency of Mohammed bin Ibrahim Al-Zakri . Alumni Alumni ( sg. : alumnus ( MASC ) or alumna ( FEM )) are former students or graduates of a school, college, or university. The feminine plural alumnae is sometimes used for groups of women, and alums ( sg. : alum ) or alumns ( sg. : alumn ) as gender-neutral alternatives. The word comes from Latin , meaning nurslings, pupils or foster children, derived from alere "to nourish". The term
77-412: The many inscriptions about alumni, Boswell concluded that it referred to exposed children who were taken into a household where they were "regarded as somewhere between an heir and a slave, partaking in different ways of both categories." Despite the warmth of feelings between the parent and child, "an alumnus might be treated both as a beloved child and as a household servant." An alumnus or alumna
88-753: The option "alumn" and "alumns" are also used in some institutions in Australia, Europe and the UK. The words "alum/alums" and "alumn/alumns" (pronounced with a silent "n") are both pronounced with the accent on the second syllable (al-UM), as opposed to the chemical compound alum and its plural, "alums" (pron. AL-um). Many universities have alumni offices that coordinate fundraising and offer benefits to registered alumni. Alumni reunions are popular events at many institutions. These may be organized by alumni offices or by alumni associations , and are often social occasions for fundraising . Full membership of alumni associations
99-450: The rules of grammar governing the inflexion of nouns in the Romance languages , the masculine plural alumni is correctly used for groups composed of both sexes: the alumni of Princeton University . The term is sometimes informally shortened to "alum" (optional plural "alums"). This is increasingly being used more formally as a gender-neutral alternative. However, and for this latter purpose,
110-431: The same root, is the adjective almus "nourishing", found in the phrase alma mater , a title for a person's home university. In Latin, alumnus is a legal term ( Roman law ) to describe a child placed in fosterage . According to John Boswell , the word "is nowhere defined in relation to status, privilege, or obligation." Citing the research of Henri Leclercq , Teresa Nani , and Beryl Rawson , who studied
121-1185: The university. At that same time, 6 branches were established in Kuwait, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. Teaching commenced in early October 2002 in Kuwait, Jordan and Lebanon while Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Egypt started in the fall semester of 2002-2003. Subsequent branches were established afterwards. A branch was opened in Oman in September 2007, in Sudan in September 2013, and in Palestine in 2017. The university also intends to open branches in Yemen , Syria and Mauritania . AOU degree offerings include Bachelor of Business Administration , Master of Business Administration , Bachelor of Science , Master of Science , Bachelor of Arts , Master of Arts , Master of Education and Bachelor of Laws . The university's academic programs are focused on business, computer sciences, arts, educations and laws. The university operates under
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