University of Khartoum

University of Khartoum جامعة الخرطوم
Motto	الله - الحقيقة - الوطن - الإنسانية Allah - Al-hagiga - Al-watan - Al-insaniyya [God - Truth - the nation - Humanity]
Established	1902, renamed University of Khartoum in 1956
Type	Public
Location	Khartoum State, Sudan
Campuses	4
Website	www.uofk.edu

The University of Khartoum (formerly shortened to UofK) (Arabic: جامعة الخرطوم) ia a multi-campus, co-educational university located in Khartoum. It is the largest and oldest university in Sudan. UofK was founded as Gordon Memorial College in 1902 and established in 1956 when Sudan gained independence. Since that date, the University of Khartoum has been recognized as a top university and a high-ranked academic institution in Sudan and Africa.

It features several institutes, academic units and research centres including Mycetoma Research Center, Soba University Hospital, Saad Abualila Hospital, Dr. Salma Dialysis centre, Institute of Endemic Diseases and U of K publishing house. The Sudan Library, a section of the university's library, serves as the national library of Sudan.

History

In 1898 after Britain gained dominance in Sudan as part of a condominium arrangement, Lord Kitchener proposed founding a college in the memory of Gordon of Khartoum, who was killed in the Battle of Khartoum. Gordon Memorial College was founded in 1902 with primary education being its sole program.

By 1906, the college was offering programs for training assistant engineers, land surveyors and primary school teachers. The first equipped laboratory for bacteriological analysis was added in 1905, with donations from Sir Henry Wellcome, an American-British pharmaceutical entrepreneur and archaeologist.

In 1924, the college incorporated programs in Sharia, engineering, education (teachers training), clerical work, accounting and science. The Kitchener School of Medicine, the first medical school in Sudan, was established.

In 1936, the School of Law was established. In 1947, the college was affiliated with The University of London as the first overseas participant in its "special relationship" scheme. The first graduates to receive University of London degrees completed their programs in 1950. The next year, Gordon Memorial College was formally re-named University College Khartoum, which incorporated the Kitchener School of Medicine.

When Sudan gained independence in 1956, the new Parliament passed a bill to award university status to Khartoum University College. It officially became Khartoum University on 24 July 1956. The eminent horticultural scientist John Pilkington Hudson was a visiting professor in 1961-3, who founded its department of horticulture.^[1]

Student body

The university has 16,800 undergraduate students in 23 faculties, schools and graduate research institutes. The annual admission rate is 3,500 students, 55% of whom are female. There are 6,000 graduate students (graduate diploma, M.Sc. and Ph.D.). It has 850 teaching staff (faculty), 20 research fellows and 500 teaching assistants.

Campuses

There are four campuses:

• Central campus in central Khartoum.
• Medical campus south of central Khartoum.
• Agriculture and Veterinary campus at Shambat, Khartoum North.
• Education campus at Omdurman 15 km from central campus.

Admission

Undergraduate admission policy is governed by the Board of Higher Education of Sudan, which sets the minimum admission requirement for high school students based on their national origin (Sudanese vs. non-Sudanese) and the high-school certificate board.

For post-graduate studies, the requirements are on the university admission webpage.1

Khartoum University students engage in workshops, lectures, debates, forum activism, book clubs and political parties. Sporting activities include university sports championship tournament and Sudan colleges championship tournament.

Faculties

• Faculty of Arts
• Faculty of Law
• Faculty of Science
• Faculty of Medicine
• Faculty of Pharmacy
• Faculty of Dentistry
• Faculty of Engineering
• Faculty of Architecture
• Faculty of Mathematical Sciences
• School of Management Studies
• Faculty of Economical and Social Studies
• Faculty of Education
• Faculty of Agriculture
• Faculty of Forestry
• Faculty of Animal Production
• Faculty of Veterinary Medicine
• Faculty of Medical Laboratory Science
• Faculty of Public and Environmental Health

Research centers

University of Khartoum plays a leading role in scientific research and development through a number of specialized research centers and institutes:

• Institute of Endemic Diseases
• Professor Abdallah Altayeb Institute for Arabic Language
• Institute of African and Asian Studies
• Building and Road Research Institute (BRRI)
• Development Studies and Reserarch Institute
• Mycetoma Research Center

Libraries

University of Khartoum Library, known as the "Main Library," is one of the biggest and oldest libraries in universities in Sudan and Africa. The library building represent the historical and iconic heritage of U. of K. In addition to the Main library, there are small libraries in each faculty and institute as well as Altegany Almahi library for postgraduate students and Sudan Library.

ICT

University of Khartoum has an Information Technology and Communication Center which is responsible for developing and managing of the ICT infrastructure of the university. All university campuses are connected by dedicated high-speed links (fiber optics); WiFi covered most of the campuses and electronic registration on the university website. In addition to the ICT centre, the Faculty of Mathematical Sciences has its own Information Technology research unit which is active in developing and promoting Open Source software in Sudan.

Vice-chancellors

Since the independence of Sudan, highly qualified Sudanese were appointed to the position of University of Khartoum vice chancellor. The first one was Dr. Nasor Alhag Ali and the most notable one is Prof. Abdalla Elltaib.

Notable alumni

University of Khartoum plays a great role in building and qualifying most of the Sudanese leaders.

Politics

• Hassan al-Turabi: leader of the National Islamic Front and former dean of Faculty of Law
• John Garang: former leader of Sudan People Liberation Movement
• Francis Deng: United Nations' Under-Secretary General.
• Ali Osman Taha: vice president of Sudan
• Dr. Mansoor Khalid: former minister of Foreign Affairs

Science and art

• Prof. Abdalla Eltaib: one of the most notable scholars in the Arabic language in the last 60 years.
• Leila Aboulela:Sudanese writer and playwright.

References

1. ^ ODNB entry: Retrieved 24 July 2011. Subscription required.

External links

• University of Khartoum website
• Durham University Library Special Collections Catalogue

Coordinates: 15°36′44″N 32°32′32″E / 15.61222°N 32.54222°E / 15.61222; 32.54222