Al Akhawayn University
university in Morocco
Al Akhawayn University (Arabic: جامعة الأخوين; Berber: Tasdawit En Wawmaten; abbreviated AUI. Also known as The American University in Morocco) is a public, independent, not-for-profit, American-style liberal arts university located in Ifrane, Morocco. It follows an English-language liberal arts curriculum based on the American higher education system. Founded by royal decree (Dahir) in 1993 and officially inaugurated on January 16, 1995, by King Hassan II, it is the only university in North Africa to offer a fully American-style liberal arts curriculum, with English as the primary language of instruction.
Situated on a 72-hectare residential campus in the Middle Atlas Mountains at an elevation of approximately 1,650 meters, the university is about 70 km from the imperial city of Fez. Al Akhawayn University is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE).
History
Al Akhawayn University was created by King Hassan II, who sought to establish a high-quality institution in Morocco modeled on the American higher education system. The university was founded by Royal Decree (Dahir) in 1993 and inaugurated by the King on January 16, 1995. The Arabic name al-akhawayn, meaning "the two brothers," symbolizes the fraternal ties between the Kingdom of Morocco and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, whose respective sovereigns supported the project.
The U.S. Department of State provided funding to the school in 2020 and 2021 through the Middle East Partnership Initiative. In 2021, the department paused funding due to reports of sexual harassment against students and faculty members.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Al Akhawayn University” is university in Morocco. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Akhawayn, University and university, not as a finished interpretation.
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The record creator and administrative purpose are central evidence, because official documentation reflects both action and institutional priorities. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2829294. VIAF identifies the subject as 123490149. The Library of Congress control number is no2002100430. Authority coordinates are 33.539, -5.106. 3 of 5 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1993, 1995, 2020 and 2021.
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This entry incorporates text from “Al Akhawayn University” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.