Global Academic Partnerships

UNIVERSITY OF THE WESTERN CAPE (UWC)

Since 1986, the University of Missouri System has partnered with the University of the Western Cape (UWC) in Cape Town, South Africa, to advance mutual understanding between the institutions' faculties and foster cooperative teaching, research, and service projects. This partnership, known as the University of Missouri South African Education Program (UMSAEP), has delivered on the goal of aiding South Africans disadvantaged by their government's former apartheid policies.

More info about UMSAEP

UMSAEP virtual symposium recording - April 7, 2021

MODERN COLLEGE OF BUSINESS AND SCIENCE (MCBS)

The University of Missouri-St. Louis and the Modern College of Business and Science of Muscat, Oman entered into an academic affiliation agreement on August 9, 1996. The Modern College of Business and Science (MCBS) is a two-year college offering eleven academic programs. Among these programs, four University Transfer Programs enable students to transfer into the baccalaureate program at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Students graduating from MCBS are guaranteed admission at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, provided they meet certain academic requirements.

The University of Missouri-St. Louis assisted the Modern College of Business and Science in developing programs in Business Administration, Computer Science and Economics. The University of Missouri-St. Louis evaluates and monitors the quality of MCBS graduates ensuring that those graduates are sufficiently prepared to continue their studies in four-year baccalaureate program in the United States.

Modern College of Business and Science

GULF UNIVERSITY FOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (GUST)

History & Milestones

Toward the end of the 1990’s, the government of Kuwait made the decision to open its higher education market to private universities. At about the same time, the University of Missouri – St Louis (UMSL) successfully served as the sponsor and consultant for the establishment of another private institution in the Gulf region, the Modern College of Business and Science in Oman (1996). Inspired by this example, a group of leading Kuwaiti academics turned to Dr. Joel Glassman, UMSL’s retired Associate Provost of Academic Affairs and Director of the International Studies and Programs Office, to invite UMSL to serve as the mentor institution to help establish the first American model university in Kuwait.  Following the requirements of the Private Universities Council (PUC), the Kuwaiti government institution appointed to oversee the establishment of private universities to the Gulf country, the two sides signed a contract in 2002. A central PUC requirement is for the private Kuwaiti university to partner with an accredited American institution that will serve as an institutional consultant providing quality assurance at all levels. UMSL Chancellor Kristin Sobolik has been serving on GUST’s Board of Trustees ever since co-founder Glassman’s retirement from UMSL in 2019.

UMSL formally became that strategic partner for the Gulf University of Science and Technology (GUST) in the fall of 2002, and has successfully assisted GUST with its ongoing and robust institutional growth.

Services frequently provided by UMSL:

• Institution building consultancy and services, including schools, departments, research centers, and student services units
• Assistance with GUST’s personnel affairs, including faculty hiring and academic promotion procedures
• Academic quality assurance, such as the bi-annual academic program reviews of GUST provided to the PUC
• Advice and consultation in GUST’s accreditation procedures and interaction with various United States’ accreditation bodies
• Consultancy services regarding international standardizations covering a broad spectrum of topics, ranging from academic standards to practical topics such as disability services, alumni relations and much more
• Management of the 2+2 program, the GUST Summer Student Scholarship Program, and the GUST Summer Faculty Fellowships
• Continuous ad-hoc program and service design
• Faculty development and training 

Facts & Figures

• GUST’s entire academic program portfolio is modeled after UMSL’s
• Classes are taught in English; student services are available in English and in Arabic
• GUST Student enrollment increased from 500 in 2002 to 4,200 students in 2019
• GUST Accreditations:
  • Kuwait PUC accreditation since 2002 (4-year renewal)
  • 2013: CEA (Commission on Intensive English Program Accreditation)
  • 2014: ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology)
  • 2014: AACSB (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business)
  • 2017: ACA (American Communications Association)

 Since 2006, UMSL has hosted:         

• More than 70 GUST Summer Scholarship Students
• More than 40 GUST Summer Faculty Fellows
• An International MBA Summer Workshop in 2017
• Several transfer students
• GUST researchers to UMSL conferences
• UMSL has assisted GUST with faculty and senior staff hiring and promotion processes in more than 60 cases since 2002
• UMSL has conducted 4 academic program reviews on GUST since 2010, and provided the results to the PUC
• Since 2017, UMSL’s Center for Teaching and Learning has provided GUST with a faculty development workshop that included 60 GUST faculty members

Gulf University for Science and Technology

SCHOLARSHIPS FOR STUDY AT UMSL