Aga Khan University

The Aga Khan University () is an institution of higher education that has programmes and campuses in Pakistan, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, United Kingdom and Afghanistan.
The University operates teaching hospitals – Aga Khan University Hospitals, Schools of Nursing and Midwifery, Medical Colleges, Institutes for Educational Development, Graduate School of Media and Communications, Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations, East Africa Institute and Institute for Human Development.
AKU also runs an Examination Board and manages the French Medical Institute for Mothers and Children in Kabul, Afghanistan.
More than 2 million patients per year are treated at seven AKU hospitals and more than 350 medical centres in East Africa and Pakistan.
A study of AKU's impact in Pakistan, conducted by U.S.-based Centennial Group International, found that AKU has an annual economic impact in Pakistan of US$1 billion, and directly and indirectly supports 42,000 jobs annually.
AKU was ranked among the top 100 universities for clinical medicine and among the top 200 for public health internationally in the ShanghaiRanking's Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2019 released by the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU).
History.
Founded in 1983 by the Prince Aga Khan IV, AKU is one of the Aga Khan Development Network agencies.
Academics.
The Aga Khan University accounts for 75% of all biomedical research in Pakistan while the remaining 25 percent is shared by all the other institutions. AKU publishes more research articles in peer-reviewed, indexed internationally recognised journals than any other university in Pakistan. Faculty promotions are dependent on publications in indexed journals while most medical students have published by the time they graduate. Undergraduate medical students have published up to 50 research papers in indexed health journals.
It is the one of the few universities in Pakistan to provide research facilities to students at the undergraduate level. The university maintains a research office to guide and support research conducted at the university. A University Research Council also funds grants after a competitive review process facilitated by a Grants Review Committee. Particular emphasis is also placed on community related health sciences research. AKU organizes international and national research workshops and seminars. A Health Sciences Research Assembly is held annually in which faculty and students present their research.
The university is a site for NIH clinical trials. The seal (logo) of the Aga Khan University is a visual representation of the principles which underlie the founding of the university. The circular form of the seal has its roots in the rosettes of early Islamic periods. It also symbolizes the world and reflects the internationality of the Aga Khan University. At the centre of the seal is a star or sun representing light – a universal symbol of the enlightenment that education provides. The light is also symbolic of Nur (divine light). The star incorporates 49 points to commemorate the university's founding by Prince Karim Aga Khan, the Forty-Ninth imam of the Ismaili Muslims. The outer ring circumscribes a Quranic Ayat (3:103) rendered in classic thuluth script.
Campuses.
The Aga Khan University is an international university, operating on campuses in Central and South Asia, the African Great Lakes, Europe and the Middle East. In Pakistan, the university is an 84-acre campus including a hospital with two on-campus male and female hostels with a capacity of 300 each. It has a sports and rehabilitation center which is one of the best in Pakistan, with an Olympic-standard swimming pool, cricket practice nets, tennis courts, indoor gymnasium with wooden flooring, squash courts and gyms. It has cricket and football grounds with jogging tracks.
Existing campuses and international programmes include:
Institutes and Graduate Schools.
The University is home to several teaching and research Institutes on its different campuses. The Institutes each drive one of the thematic priorities of AKU and AKDN. In London, the Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations is a dedicated interdisciplinary research and graduate school that brings together humanities scholars and social scientists to critically engage with cultural, historical, political, economic, legal and religious aspects of Muslim societies. In Pakistan and East Africa, AKU has two Institutes that focus on education: the Institute for Educational Development Pakistan, and Institute for Educational Development East Africa. 
Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations.
The Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations (AKU-ISMC) was founded in 2002 and accepted its first intake of graduate students in 2006. The AKU-ISMC offers an MA in Muslim Cultures. The MA is accredited by the Higher Education Commission (Pakistan) of Pakistan and regulated by the Quality Assurance Agency in the UK. Since 2018, AKU-ISMC has been based in the Aga Khan Centre in the King's Cross area of London. The Aga Khan Centre was designed by the architect Fumihiko Maki.
Institute for Educational Development - Pakistan.
The Institute for Educational Development in Karachi (AKU-IED) is a center for developing teachers, educators, education managers, researchers and policy makers. Apart from teacher training, AKU-IED offers MEd (Masters of Education) and PhD. in Education as well. Established in 2003. AKU-EB is a federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary education in Pakistan. AKU-EB examines students at SSC and HSSC level.
Graduate School of Media and Communications.
Launched in 2015, the Aga Khan University Graduate School of Media and Communications (GSMC) is focused on education and tailored training for journalists, communicators and media executives and entrepreneurs in East Africa and beyond. On 7 December 2019, GSMC announced a partnership with Facebook to launch the Video Journalism Fellowship.