Sharjah Ruler's diverse Adelaide experience

International

The diverse range of the University of Adelaide's education and research has received positive feedback from the Ruler of Sharjah, who visited the University last month.

His Highness Dr Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al-Qassimi and his delegation visited two campuses of the University of Adelaide last month as part of his Australian tour.

His Highness, who is also Supreme President of the University of Sharjah, had a busy schedule but saw many aspects of Adelaide, including:

• Touring the University's Dental School (including its dedicated Sharjah offices), Colgate Australian Clinical Dental Research Centre and Adelaide Dental Hospital;
  
• Visiting the South Australian Virtual Reality Centre, based in the Australian School of Petroleum;
  
• Having lunch with the Governor, Her Excellency Marjorie Jackson-Nelson, Deputy Premier the Hon. Kevin Foley, and University senior management, including Vice-Chancellor Professor James McWha;
  
• Attending the official launch of the Centre for Aboriginal Studies in Music's recording and rehearsal studios;
  
• Touring the Indigenous collections of the South Australian Museum;
  
• Examining the facilities at the Australian Centre for Plant Functional Genomics at the University's Waite Campus, as well as meeting with several United Arab Emirates students.

Director of the Sharjah project, Associate Professor Viv Burgess from the Dental School, said he had received positive feedback from His Highness' delegation upon their return to Sharjah.

"They have expressed how much they enjoyed the visit, and are particularly keen to return and visit the University of Adelaide in the near future," he said.

"His Highness is a very well educated and well-spoken man. He has two PhDs, one in arid-zone horticulture from the University of Arizona and the other in History from the University of Exeter. He has a vast range of professional interests and we were able to show him a diverse range of the different programs and research we provide, which he took a strong interest in.

"We are delighted that we can help the University of Sharjah with its dental program, and hopefully this trip by His Highness can lead to further collaborations."

One of the UAE students who met with His Highness, Rawya Alkabeel (who is studying for a Bachelor of Science) said it was a great honour to meet one of the rulers from her homeland.

"I don't think I would have much of a chance to see him if we were both in Sharjah, so to meet him here was a big thrill," she said. "He was very nice, easy to talk to - it's something I'll never forget."

Story by Ben Osborne