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SUT to Expand Academic Collaborations with Qatar

15-16 January 2018: Prof. Fotuhi, President of Sharif University of Technology, along with Dr. Massoumian, International Affairs Consultant, paid a visit to Qatar University in Doha, Qatar. The purpose of this visit, which was made following the invitation of Dr. Al Derham, President of Qatar University, was to attend an international workshop entitled “Universities Ranking Based on Times Higher Education System”. This workshop was presented by Phil Baty, Editorial Director of THE.

In the margins of this workshop, Prof. Fotuhi had also a meeting with Dr. Al Derham. In this meeting, the expansion of scientific collaborations between SUT and Qatar University was discussed and stressed by the parties.

It is worth mentioning that Sharif already has several ongoing projects with Qatar University. Moreover, according to QS 2017, Qatar University is ranked 349^th in the world and 37^th among the universities under 50. Further, according to THE 2017, SUT is ranked 71^st and Qatar University is ranked 77^th between Asian universities.

In a series of meetings that were held from 18^th to 20^th December, 2017, Mr. Ashwin Fernandes, QS Regional Director for Middle East, North Africa and India came to Sharif University of Technology. During these days, Mr. Fernandes had meetings with Prof. Fotuhi, President of SUT, Vice-Presidents of the university, and heads of different departments. He also visited Sharif Technology Services Complex and various research centers and labs of the university. Further, on December 19, a workshop entitled “QS World University Ranking:n  Methodology & Analysis” was held by Mr. Fernandes. In the workshop, vice-presidents and deans of international affairs of different universities of Tehran took part.

It is worth mentioning that according to QS ranking system, Sharif University of Technology is the only university from Iran within the top 500 universities in the world.

      I

Beginning of SUT-Taiwan Cooperation

In a meeting that was held on November 22, 2017 at SUT’s International Affairs Office, Prof. Ming-Jyh CHERN, Vice-Dean of International Affairs of National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (TAIWAN TECH) paid a visit to Sharif. Prof. CHERN was received by Dr. Simchi, Dean of International Affairs, Dr. Massoumian, International Affairs Consultant, and Dr. Behzadipour, Professor at Mechanical Engineering Department.

During the meeting, possible lines of academic collaboration between SUT and TAIWAN TECH were discussed by the participants. As Prof. CHERN put it, SUT is the best university in Iran and for this reason collaborations between the universities would be beneficial to both sides. Following the meeting, professor and student exchange programs between the universities were stressed by the parties. Joint projects, linking the central labs of the universities, short-term courses, and webinars were among the other lines of cooperation discussed by the parties. Further, Prof. CHERN invited a delegation from SUT to pay a visit to TAIWAN TECH in order to negotiate the details of collaborative efforts and to visit various facilities of the university. Finally, it was decided that a proposal containing the details of the collaborations between SUT and TAIWAN TECH will be prepared in the near future.

It is worth mentioning that according to QS, TAIWAN TECH is ranked 264^th in the world in 2017.

Today, November 8, 2018: An academic delegation from Macquarie University, Australia paid a visit to Sharif University of Technology. The delegation consisted of Dr. Tracy Rushmer, Vice-Dean for Higher Degree Research of the School of Science and Engineering, Dr. Mohsen Asadnia, Professor at the School of Engineering, Mr. Tanveer Shaheed, Regional Director at International Affairs Office, and Mr. Shahram Mirzaei. On the other side, Dr. Simchi, Dean of SUT’s International Affairs, Dr. Hormozi-nezhad, Dean of Research, Dr. Mehrany, Professor at Electrical Engineering Department, Dr. Behzadipour, Professor at Mechanical Engineering Department, and Dr. Massoumian, International Affairs Consultant, received the delegation.

During the meeting, implementation of the recently signed Cotutelle agreement between the universities was discussed by the participants. As Dr. Mehrany explained, the preliminary works have been done and the first cohort of SUT’s PhD students for the program will be introduced shortly. Moreover, the short visit of SUT’s BSc students to Macquarie University, probably in April for about two weeks, was discussed by Dr. Mehrany. As Dr. Mehrany put it, Macquarie’s BSc students are also welcome to visit SUT, especially in its research centers and labs. Following the meeting, Dr. Simchi focused on the internationalization strategies of Sharif University of Technology. As he explained, creating long-term relationships between SUT and other universities is one of the main priorities of SUT. These long-term relationships may include networking research centers, technology park, and central lab of the universities for joint international projects.  Finally, the possibility of joint projects between the universities in different fields, including mechanical engineering, was discussed by the parties.

After the meeting, Dr. Tracy Rushmer gave a lecture entitled ‘High Degree Research in Australian Perspective’ to a host of SUT’s students and professors. Afterward, Dr. Asadnia introduced the faculty of engineering of Macqurie University to the audience.  It is worth mentioning that Sharif and Macquarie have already signed an MoU which has been implemented in terms of a PhD double degree program in all fields.

Attached you may find the presentation file of Dr. Tracy Rushmer, presented on November 8, 2017 at Sharif University of Technology introducing higher education in Macquarie University to SUT’s students.

Presentation by Professor Tracy, compressed

Expansion of Academic and Industrial Collaborations between Sharif and Italy

An academic delegation from the University of Trieste, Italy participated in the four days workshop entitled ‘Sharif-Trieste’ at Sharif University of Technology in 3-6 November, 2017. The delegation was accompanied by several businessmen from different companies and industries of Italy. Dr. Angello Bassi from the University of Trieste was leading the delegation. The workshop started with a welcome dinner on Friday November 3^rd. Dr. Fotuhi, President of SUT, Dr. Rashtchian, Vice-President for Education, Dr. Movahedi, Vice-President for Research and several officials and professors of SUT played host to the delegation at the welcome dinner. During the next three days, the delegation paid visits to several labs and research centers at Sharif University of Technology, including Durali’s Systems Design and Automation (DSDA) lab and Djavad Mowafaghian Research Center for Intelligent Neuro-rehabilitation Technologies.

The workshop ended with a concluding meeting at SUT’s International Affairs Office on Monday November 6^th. As the members of the delegation put it in the meeting, based on the visits and conversations during the past three days, there seems to be a huge potential for collaboration between SUT and the University of Trieste. The participants also discussed the implementation of joint projects, workshops and faculty exchange between the universities. Finally, the parties expressed their hope that in the near future, the collaborations between SUT, the University of Trieste, and the Italian companies will be expanded.

It is worth mentioning that SUT and Trieste have already signed a Memorandum of Understanding. Further, Italy is one of the strategic partners of SUT and this fact is reflected in 13 signed MoUs, two of which have been implemented in terms of PhD Dual Degree Programs.

Professor Yves Laszlo, French mathematician and Vice-Chancellor of Research at ENS, France, visited Sharif on July 18, 2017. In the meeting, which was held at SUT’s International Affairs Office, Dr. Movahedi, Vice-President of Research, Dr. Daneshgar, Head of the Department of Mathematical Sciences, Dr. Ghofrani, Head of the Energy Engineering Department, Dr. Kia, Professor at the Department of Chemistry, and Dr. Massoumian, International Affairs Consultant played host to Dr. Laszlo.

At the beginning of the meeting, Dr. Massoumian briefed Dr. Laszlo about Sharif University of Technology. The participants also discussed the possible lines of cooperation between ENS and SUT. Following the meeting, Dr. Laszlo introduced ENS to the participants. As he put it, according to QS rankings, ENS is the best university in France. This university consists of seven humanities and eight Natural Sciences departments. Moreover, there are 10 Fields Medal winners and 12 Noble laureates among its alumni.

Finally, the parties decided to start the collaboration between the institutes in terms of short-term internship programs for Masters and PhD students, faculty exchange programs, and double degree programs in two or three disciplines. It was also decided that an MoU be signed between the universities in the near future.

Afterwards, Professor Laszlo visited Sharif Technology Services Complex, Institute for Nano Science and Nanotechnology, and several labs in the Department of Chemistry. 

Maryam Mirzakahni, the first woman to win the Fields Medal in Mathematics, passed away on July 15, 2017. Mirzakhani was a graduate of SUT’s Department of Mathematics. At the time of her death, she was the professor of Mathematics at Stanford University.

In separate letters of condolence, Dr. Rouhani, President of Iran, Dr. Farhadi, Minister of Science, Higher Education, and Research, and Dr. Fotuhi, President of SUT, offered their condolences on the untimely death of Prof. Mirzakhani to her family and Iran’s academic society.

A delegation consisting of students and professors from Tsinghua University, China, visited Sharif on July 15, 2017. Professor Hu Yu, Head of Journalism and Communication Department of Tsinghua University, led the delegation. The other members of the delegation were graduate and undergraduate students who were interested in the expansion of cooperation with Iran from different angles- both from engineering perspective and humanities perspective.

The delegation visited SUT’s Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology and also Sharif Technology Services Complex. They also had a meeting with several professors and officials of SUT- including Dr. Ghofrani, Head of Energy Engineering Department, Dr. Khalaj, Professor of Electrical Engineering, Dr. Massoumian, International Affairs Consultant, Dr. Behzadipour, Professor at the Mechanical Engineering Department, Dr. Hajizadeh, Professor at the Graduate School of Management and Economics, and Dr. Fatemi, Professor at the Chemical and Petroleum Engineering Department.

During the meeting, after a brief introduction of SUT by Dr. Massoumian, Dr. Ghofrani gave a lecture entitled an overview of higher education in Iran with focus on Sharif University. On the other side, Mr. Zhao Chuang, introduced Tsinghua University to the participants. The parties also discussed the phenomenon of brain drain which besets both countries and proposed their solutions.  Finally, both parties expressed their hope that this visit can lead to a fruitful collaboration between the universities in the near future.

This Chinese delegation had also visited Kashan, Isfahan, and Shiraz during the previous days. It is worth mentioning that Tsinghua University is the best university in China and is ranked 24^th in 2017 according to QS rankings. Moreover, SUT’s current active engagements with China are collaboration with Shanghai University in China and HKUST in Hong Kong.

In a meeting that was held on July 9, 2017 at SUT’s presidential office, Mr. Polendakov, Ambassador of Bulgaria in Iran came to Sharif. Dr. Fotuhi, President of SUT, Dr. Movaghar, Dean of International Affairs, Dr. Massoumian, International Affairs Consultant, and Dr. Khalaj, Professor at Electrical Engineering Department, received  Mr. Polendakov.

After a brief presentation of SUT, the parties discussed the potential lines of cooperation between Sharif and Bulgaria. On behalf of Bulgarian universities, Mr. Polendakov said that these universities are more than willing to have active collaboration with Iranian universities, especially SUT which is famous as the MIT of Iran. The active collaborations of SUT with the members of the European Union, which is about 50% of collaborations in terms of MoUs, Dual Degree Program, Joint Publications, and Faculty Exchange were also discussed in the meeting. As
Dr. Fotuhi put it, the statistics show that the EU has become the most important strategic partner of SUT during the past decade or so.

It is worth mentioning that from the next January, Bulgaria will hold the presidency of the Council of the EU for 6 months. Moreover, the rector of Varna University of Management, Bulgaria visited SUT last week; a meeting which is going to be followed up in terms of signing an MoU between the universities in a near future.

In a meeting that was held on July 5, 2017 at SUT’s International Affairs Office, Professor Todor Radev, Rector of the Varna University of Management visited Sharif. In this meeting, Dr. Movaghar, Dean of International Affairs Office,  Dr Sepehri, Professor at the Graduate School of Management and Economics, and Dr. Massoumian, International Affairs Consultant, played host to Dr. Radev.

During the meeting, both sides gave a presentation of their respective universities. The parties also discussed the formation of joint degree programs for hospitality and tourism management at SUT’s International Campus on Kish Island. Further, dual degree programs in MBA and joint projects in entrepreneurship were also discussed by the parties.  

It is worth mentioning that Varna University of Management is one of the best universities in the field of hospitality and tourism management. This university is also very active in international engagements, including student and faculty mobility programs. Moreover, several world-class international journals on tourism management, for example European Journal of Tourism Research, is published by this university. Varna University works in close connection with the best of the tourism industry, as a result of which its students can enjoy internship programs in, say, the best restaurants of Europe.