Wikis
| King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals جامعة الملك فهد للبترول و المعادن Ǧāmaʿat al-Malik Fahd Lilbetrūl wa al-Maʿādin |
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| Motto | وقل ربي زدني علما Say My Lord Increase Me in Knowledge (English) |
| Established | 23 September 1963[citation needed] |
| Type | Public (male only) |
| Rector | Khaled S. Al-Sultan |
| Faculty | 800+ |
| Undergraduates | 10,000+ |
| Postgraduates | 500+ |
| Location | Dhahran, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia |
| Campus | Enclosed |
| Former names | College of Petroleum and Minerals (1963-1986[citation needed]) |
| Website | kfupm.edu.sa forums: ikfupm.com skfupm.com blogs: kfupmblogs.net |
King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM or UPM) (Arabic: جامعة الملك فهد للبترول و المعادن Ǧāmaʿat al-Malik Fahd Lilbetrūl wa al-Maʿādin - short:(جامعة البترول Ǧāmaʿat al-Betrūl) is a male-only public university in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.
It was established on 23 September 1963 [1][citation needed] by a Saudi royal decree as the College of Petroleum and Minerals providing high-level education about petroleum and minerals, two of the most-valuable natural resources in Saudi Arabia. It was elevated to university status in 1975[citation needed].
Among Saudi universities, it is highest regarded[citation needed] for excellence in its science & engineering programs. It offers some programs that are not offered elsewhere in Saudi Arabia.[citation needed]
It is named after King Fahd.
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Located in Dhahran, the campus is between the headquarters of the Saudi Arabian Oil Company, Saudi Aramco and the Dhahran Air Base. It is near the Persian Gulf and is seven kilometres from Al-Khobar city. The port city of Dammam is 20 kilometres away. The oil-producing town of Abqaiq is located 70 kilometres west, and the ancient oasis of Al-Hasa is about 130 kilometres south of the campus. The island of Bahrain is 35 kilometres from the Saudi coastline.
The academic buildings are located on a 100-foot "Jabal" (Arabic for mountain). The Academic Complex of the "Jabal" dominates the surrounding countryside. Fortune magazine called it "a jewel of a university on Arabian sands". A water tower, located between academic buildings, has become the symbol of the university and can be seen from several kilometres away. There are more than thirty academic buildings whose facilities include:
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The facilities also include a natural outdoor amphitheatre, playing fields and indoor courts for intercollegiate and intramural sports, and the distinctive water tower with circulatory water systems.
Wireless Service: The Wireless Connectivity (WiFi) Service is deployed within the university campus. This KFUPM Wireless LAN service is available in all academic and administrative buildings.
Smart Card Service [1]
This Smart Card is an all-in-one card and is designed to make life easier for students, faculty and staff within the campus. It may be used for a range of campus services and access control including:
The medium of instruction in KFUPM is English. However, courses on Islamic Studies and Arabic Language are taught in Arabic. University offer degrees of Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, Master of Engineering and Doctor of Philosophy. The grading system is the standard 0 to 4.0 scale with classes of:
| Grade | Letter Grade | GPA |
|---|---|---|
| Exceptional | A+ | 4.00 |
| Excellent | A | 3.75 |
| Superior | B+ | 3.50 |
| Very Good | B | 3.00 |
| Above Average | C+ | 2.50 |
| Good | C | 2.00 |
| High-Pass | D+ | 1.50 |
| Pass | D | 1.00 |
| Fail | F | 0.0 |
With an acceptance rate is only 15%, it is the most selective in Saudi Arabia. University’s admission policy which applies certain criteria to ensure admissions of the most promising students. As of 2009/2010 academic year, the cutoff percentage score for admission was determined to be 83% comprising 20% for the high school certificate, 30% for the general capabilities test (similar to SAT), and 50% for the collective test performances (test of high school's maths, physics, chemistry, English).
As of October 2008, THE - QS World University Rankings ranked KFUPM at 209 amongst the top 300 universities around the world.[2]
All programs of the engineering colleges were evaluated for "Substantial-Equivalency” recognition by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) in April 2001. They were found substantially equivalent to similar accredited programs in the U.S.
The new trends in accreditation criteria have brought outcome assessment to focus. Accrediting agencies such the ABET, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, the Computer Science Accreditation Board and the National Architectural Accrediting Board require programs or colleges seeking accreditation to have self-assessment. Industry push and competitive job markets have also contributed to the need for continuous program-quality improvement that focus on student learning and preparation for professional practice after graduation.
Preparatory Year Program (Orientation Year) is mandatory two-semester program for all students admitted in KFUPM before being enrolled in university's regular degree programs, i.e., beginning freshman year. The Preparatory Year Program aims at preparing newly admitted students for their undergraduate studies at the University. It is a non-credit program. A student must select a major by the end of the prep year. Students can be exempted from some courses after taking some promotion exams. During the year, courses include:
1) College of Engineering Sciences website
2) College of Computer Science & Engineering (CCSE) website
3) College of Sciences website
4) College of Industrial Management (CIM) website
5) College of Environmental Design (CED) website
6) College Of Applied and Supporting Studies (Non-degree) website,
7) Community Colleges Additionally, there are two active and one defunct community colleges:
Previous Rectors of KFUPM
King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals organized the groundbreaking International Advisory Board (IAB) in March 2007. The IAB is composed of senior academic and corporate excutives. It is part of the university's long tradition of bringing an international perspective to higher education and research in Saudi Arabia.
IAB Members
Dhahran Techno-Valley [31] is destined to gather national and international research centers in one location. It is expected that outstanding services plus recreational activities will add to the vibrancy and networking amongst tenants in the Valley Community. Academic support from KFUPM is a commitment that can be counted upon. Other leading technological and scientific institutions in the area will also be fully utilized. The Techno-Valley consist of 5 entities located at the KFUPM Dhahran campus: King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Science Park, The Innovation Center, Consulting Services Center, Technology Business Incubator, and Liaison Office. The valley also include a sixth entity of Sultan Bin AbdulAziz Science & Technology Center (SciTech), which located at shores of the Persian Gulf at nearby Al-Khobar city.
Generally referred to as the KASP, the science park was established in 2002 and is located on a 35-hectare site north of the KFUPM campus, the park is closely integrated with the university. The location, with its proximity to the science and engineering colleges, provides for considerable interaction between tenant firms and their personnel and university scientists and engineers. At present, there are few companies that have joined the park. These are Schlumberger, Ciba, Yokogawa and JCCP presently share research interests with the university and are located in its Research Institute.
Creating a world-class environment that aspires innovation and entrepreneurship was the main objective for KFUPM behind establishing Dhahran Techno-Valley. KFUPM vision for Innovation facilitates the flow of technology from University laboratories and research centers to the knowledge-based and technology marketplace. The Innovation Center supports new concepts from the idea generation stage through the prototyping steps until reaching to the proof of concept and including the intellectual property protection. The Innovation vision of the university describes all the roads, distances, conditions and connections between where the entrepreneurs are and where they want to go. It provides many alternative paths to future innovation and all University entrepreneurs.
The Consulting Services Center at the university facilitate the consulting services for the university faculty to serve the industrial community in the Saudi Arabia which contribute to their professional development and help the outside community to resolve problems which require high intellectual and technological background. It is sought that such interaction would contribute to both the professional development of the faculty members and to the university by providing practical applications and state-of-the art course content. The interaction would improve quality of research, design projects, and would provide more training and employment opportunities for students.
It provides an set of logistical, strategic, and operational support for start-up Saudi technology companies and entrepreneurs to help increasing success of their companies. The Technology Business Incubator gives office space and office support services that are designed with technology companies in mind. These services include immediate availability of modular office units, furniture, computers, network, internet connectivity, servers, printers, communication facilities including telephone and fax services, shared reception, secretarial, and support services, meeting facilities, access to business, science, and technology library, and access to cafeteria and leisure facilities.
The mission of the Liaison Office is to facilitate and promote the University capabilities, expertise and services to the local industries and to be the focal point of contact with the industry/business.
It is located at the corniche of the nearby Al-Khobar city on a land of 21,700 m2 area. The buildings area is 14,100 m2. It consists of seven main show halls, dealing with different sciences and technologies. There includes more than 350 scientific exhibited pieces. And the IMAX scientific dome (the only IMAX theater in Saudi Arabia), the Astronomic Observatory, Educational Unit, Conference Hall, Temporary Exhibitions Hall and Administrative and Services Facilities. The center aims to cultivate the individuals of the Saudi society, especially the teenagers, let them know more about the principles of science, their application, explanation and simplifying them through presenting them in an interactive and interesting style, depending on education through entertainment/education through experiment and observation.
Website
Research at the university can be classified into personal, sponsored, and client-funded. The mission of the RI is to serve the nation by conducting client-driven research and development using university resources. Among its objectives are: serve the nation as a professional problem solver; adapt imported technologies to the Saudi environment; serve the needs of government organizations, local industry, and businesses for research and development; develop local expertise; support graduate and undergraduate programs at KFUPM, and contribute to the high-quality education and training of students.
The technical expertise for applied research available in the RI is focused in its seven centers with their sections/labs.
• Center for Applied Physical Sciences: The Metrology & Standards Section and the Central Analytical Laboratory.
• Center for Communications & Computer Research: Computer Technology, and Communications Technology Sections.
• Center for Economics & Management Systems: Business Incubators, Economic Studies, and Management & Quality Control Sections.
• Center for Engineering Research: Materials, Urban Areas Engineering, Engineering Analysis, Energy Systems Sections, and Material Characterization Laboratory.
• Center for Environment & Water: Water, Environment, and Marine Studies Sections.
• Center for Petroleum & Minerals: Petroleum & Gas Engineering, Petroleum Geology & Geophysics, Minerals Resources, and Remote Sensing Sections.
• Center for Refining & Petrochemicals:Refining, Petrochemicals, and Petrochemical Products Development Sections.
The manpower of the RI as of 1 January 2005 was 258 full-time employees, of whom 53 held PhD degrees, 64 held MS degrees, 50 held BS degrees, and 91 held other credentials. Project teams are typically formed of 35% full time RI researchers, 25% faculty members, 10% students, and 30% support staff.
Colleges also have their own research programs. Inter-departmental research projects are often being funded by King Abdulaziz City of Science and Technology or Saudi Aramco. Engineering Research examples are:
The library, centrally located in Building 8 and within a short walking distance from most classrooms and laboratories, has an available floor space of nearly 7,000 square meters. It is an "open-stack" library, allowing users free access to its resources. Reading areas are provided on the first, third, and fourth floors. To encourage maximum usage, it operates with a minimum of regulations and restrictions.
The current collection of books and bound periodicals totals over 328,000 volumes, 32% in science, 21% in engineering, 24% in humanities, and 23% in social sciences. It has over 23,000 volumes in Arabic and over 300,000 volumes in English, and also subscribes to approximately 1,500 periodical titles. In addition, there are some 490,000 research reports on microfiche and 63,000 documents in other media, including more than 25,000 educational films and 38,000 reels of journal back issues on microfilm. Audiovisual materials are provided through a well-equipped audio-visual (AV) department with a collection consisting principally of motion pictures, filmstrips, videotapes, and audiocassettes. These AV materials can be used in the Library Auditorium which is also used for seminars, lectures, short courses, theses defense, and other presentations.
Clubs Main Website (in Arabic) (not updated), Clubs Discussion Forum
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A large spacious building is located adjacent to the student dormitories. It can accommodate more than 1,500 students at a time. Students are provided with subsidized meals, comprising of breakfast, lunch and dinner. In addition to the student cafeteria, there are a number of coffee shops located in different academic buildings and student dormitories offering varied refreshments.
Sports and recreation facilities are in three areas on the main campus.
The university has a separate area for student housing on campus consisting of buildings which accommodate more than 4,000 students. As of June 2009, the construction of Phase-II student housing buildings is finished and now accommodate 1,500 students. In addition, Phase-III of students housing and a multi-story car parking building are under construction which will also accommodate about additional 1,500 students.
The word "Oria", short for "Orientation", is generally used among the university community to describe the preparatory orientation year (first-year) students. Throughout their first year of study at campus, they are commonly targets of good-natured teasing and bullying by their higher-year counterparts, as a regular tradition in the university.
Dr. Muhammad Ali Al-Tayyeb, Head of Data Services Department at OPEC between 2000-2005
Coordinates: 26°18′35″N 50°08′38″E / 26.30972°N 50.14389°E
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