Aga Khan University

Aga Khan University
آغا خان یونیورسٹی
AKU seal
Type	Private
Established	1983 (1983)
Endowment	>USD $10 billion
Chancellor	Aga Khan IV
President	Firoz Rasul
Students	~2,313
Location	Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan
Campus	Urban Karachi (main campus) African Great Lakes (KEN, TZA, UGA) United Kingdom
Colours	White, Green, White
Nickname	AKU
Affiliations	HEC, UGC, ACU
Website	aku.edu

The Aga Khan University (Urdu: جامىهء ﺁغا خان; popular as "AKU"), is a private research university located in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.^[1] Founded in 1983, the university was named for its famed benefactor and philanthropist, Aga Khan IV.^[2] The university holds the unique distinction of being one of the first private-sector universities in Pakistan.^[2]

The Aga Khan University maintains its central campus in Pakistan; teaching hospitals in countries in the African Great Lakes; and the United Kingdom. The university offers various academic programmes for undergraduate, post-graduate studies in biological and medical sciences.^[3] It is organized into five undergraduate and four post-graduate programmes on two main campuses— Pakistan and Tanzania.^[3] The University is a member of the Association of Commonwealth Universities of the United Kingdom.^[4]

It consistently maintained its top position in all rankings of HEC since 2005 and has been best university in health sciences category by the HEC as of 2014.^[5] In addition, the university secured its ranking among the 250 Asian universities ranking by the British Quacquarelli Symonds.^[6]^[7] Aga Khan pioneers the concept of modern medical science research in Pakistan and overall ranked its research in the top on the global impact of its research.^[8]

Scientific research and clinical trials

The Aga Khan University accounts for 75% of all biomedical research in Pakistan while the remaining 30 percent is shared by all the other institutions.^[9] AKU publishes more research articles in peer-reviewed, indexed internationally recognised journals than any other university in Pakistan.^[9] Faculty promotions are dependent on publications in indexed journals while most medical students have published by the time they graduate.

Its the only university of Pakistan which provides research facilities to students at undergraduate level. Many undergraduate medical students have published upto 40-50 research papers in indexed health journals.(Needs reference, many junior faculty have not published this many papers)

The university maintains a Research Office to guide and support research conducted at the University.^[10] A University Research Council also funds grants after a competitive review process facilitated by a Grants Review Committee.^[11] 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.^[12]

The university is the site for NIH clinical trials.^[13]

Campuses and facilities

The Aga Khan University is an international university, operating on campuses in Central and South Asia, the African Great Lakes, Europe and the Middle East.In Pakistan, the university is an 84-acre campus including a hospital with two on-campus male and female hostels having a capacity of 300 each.It has got a sports and rehabilitation center which is one of best in Pakistan.With Olympics standard swimming pool, cricket practice nets, tennis courts, indoor Gymnasium with wooden flooring, squash courts and gyms. It is unparalleled in quality and maintenance. It has cricket and football grounds with jogging tracks. Free WiFi is available all over the campus. Hostels are three storey buildings and two blocks. There are common rooms on each floor along with Kitchens, and Laundry rooms facilitated with washing machines and dryers. Students have air conditioners in their rooms. Meals are served at main cafeteria which is open 24/7 with discounts for students and staff. Saturdays and Sundays are off for year 1 and 2 students while seniors have different schedules.

Existing campuses and international programmes include:

Faculty of Health Sciences located on an 84-acre (340,000 m²) campus in the heart of Karachi, Pakistan, built in the 1980s^[14]
Aga Khan University Health Sciences campus in Nairobi, Kenya^[15]
A USD 500 million campus for the university's Faculty of Arts and Sciences is under development in Karachi Pakistan. An area of 1,100 acres (4.5 km²) has been acquired just outside Karachi, and Payette Associates are the project architects.
Institute for Educational Development in the Karimabad area of Karachi, Pakistan and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations in London, United Kingdom;
A USD 450 million campus planned for Arusha, in north-eastern Tanzania to be built in the next 15 years.^[16]
Advanced Nursing Studies (ANS) Programmes at campuses in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda;
Programmes for capacity development for teachers and nurses in Afghanistan, Egypt and Syria;

Impact of AKU on society

AKU played a major role in the relief efforts after the 2005 Pakistan earthquake ^[17]

Role of religion in the University

Seal

The seal (logo) of the Aga Khan University is a visual representation of the principles which underlie the founding of the university.^[18] 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 and reads as follows:

وَاعْتَصِمُوا بِحَبْلِ اللَّهِ جَمِيعًا وَلَا تَفَرَّقُوا وَاذْكُرُوا نِعْمَتََ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ اِذْ كُنْتُمْ اعْدَاءً فَالَّفَ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِكُمْ فَاصْبَحْتُمْ بِنِعْمَتِهِ اِخْوَنًا وَكُنْتُمْ عَلَى شَفَا حُفْرَةٍ مِنْ النَّارِ فَانْقَذَكُمْ مِنْهَا كَذَلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ ءايَتِهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ

The English translation reads:

And hold fast,
All together, by the rope
Which God (stretches out for you),
And be not divided among yourselves,
And remember with gratitude
God's favour on you:
For ye were enemies
And He joined your hearts
In love, so that by His grace
Ye became brethren
And ye were on the brink of the pit of Fire,
And He saved you from it.
Thus doth God make His Signs clear to you
That ye may be guided.

Notable alumni, professors and staff

Professors and staff

Sahabzada Yaqub Khan Former chairman of the AKU Board of Trustees, foreign minister of Pakistan from 1982 to 1991, also famous for his refusal to carry out military operation against innocent civilians in former East Pakistan for which he conscientiously resigned as Governor of East Pakistan
Abdul Gaffar Billoo is known Pakistani pediatric endocrinologist at the Aga Khan University (AKU) where he serve as professor of clinical pediatrics.^[19] He was awarded with Sitara-i-Imtiaz for public services the most prestigious civilian award by then-President of Pakistan General Pervez Musharraf in March 2007.^[20] He founded HANDS International a Nonprofit organization in Pakistan which has been working since 1975.^[21]

Notable alumni

Adil H Haider, MD, MPH, a graduate of Aga Khan University (AKU), is a well known Trauma Surgeon and Outcomes research Scientist in the United States.^[22] He is currently serving as the Kessler Director of the Center for Surgery and Public Health at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Public Health.^[23] He has also served as Associate Professor of Surgery, Health Policy and Management and Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine and the Director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Surgical Trials and Outcomes Research at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health.^[24]^[25]^[26] Dr Haider developed Doctella, a smartphone app that provides patients with checklists before undergoing any surgery or medical procedure.^[27] Dr Haider is the current Recorder of Association for Academic Surgery.
Naeem Rahim, MD is a Nephrologist^[28] and founder of Idaho based JRM foundation For humanity^[29] & Co-founder of Idaho Kidney Institute.^[30] He was one of the First Idahoans to receive the Ellis Island Medals of Honor in the last 25 years.^[31] Naeem Rahim went to Aga Khan medical college for medicine graduated in 1998.
Fahim Rahim, M.D - Nephrologist , Recipient of Ellis Island Medals of Honor, in 2011.^[32] Recipient of Congressional Record by US House of Representatives in July, 2011 (Hon. Dan Burton of Indiana, Co-Chair Congressional Pakistan Caucus)^[33] He graduated from Aga Khan medical college in 1997.