University of Jordan

The University of Jordan (Arabic: الجامعة الأردنية; abbreviated UJ or JU) is a public university located in Amman, Jordan. Founded in 1962, and it is the largest and oldest institution of higher education in Jordan. It is located in the capital Amman in the Jubaiha District of Amman. The university comprises 25 faculties and offers 91 bachelor's programs and 161 postgraduate programs. According to its published strategy, it aims to strengthen its international profile and productivity across academic fields.

Enrollment grew from about 35,000 students in the early 2000s to roughly 45,000 by the mid-2010s, surpassing 50,000 in 2019. The university reports more than 200,000 graduates. Its student body includes about 12% international students. The faculty numbers roughly 1,600 members, about one-third of whom hold the rank of full professor. Most of them earned their academic qualifications at institutions in the United States, Europe, Asia, and the Arab world, in addition to who are University of Jordan alumni. The University District is considered to be one of the most developed parts of Amman, with a rich history of education, culture, and a high population density. Also, its street is a main street and one of the most vibrant streets in the city.

In terms of recognition, the University of Jordan has secured the top spot locally and ranked 324th globally in the QS World University Rankings for 2026. This further solidifies its position as a leading academic institution.

Campuses

Amman

In 1962, the University of Jordan selected Jubaiha area as the construction site for its campus. Situated north of the capital, Amman, the conservatory offered ample space, picturesque views adorned with ancient cypress and pine trees, and a central location, close to significant landmarks in Jordan.

Spanning an area of 1,200 dunums, equivalent to 0.463 square miles (1.20 km2), The university's main campus in Jubaiha borders University Street (Queen Rania Street), a major road connecting eastern and western Amman. The corridor includes cafés, restaurants, hotels, and student housing, and it is a common destination for students and visitors.

The campus has twelve gates, including one on the southern side, two on the eastern side, two on the northern side, and seven on the western side, notably the University Street side, which includes the main entrance. Also, the university designates four lots for student parking: near the School of Arts (south campus), the Admissions and Registration Unit by University Street, the School of Education at the northern gate, and the Scientific Parking area on the eastern side of the scientific faculties.

Aqaba

Aqaba Campus is the southern branch of the University of Jordan. It is located in Aqaba, Jordan, and was established in 2009 as part of a national strategy to expand higher education and spur development in the Aqaba region. His Majesty King Abdullah II laid its foundation stone in April 2009. The campus is located on the northern outskirts of Aqaba and offers a range of facilities and infrastructure to support student life. It features modern academic buildings. Recreational and sports facilities are also part of the campus, such as a multi-purpose gymnasium for indoor sports and other leisure amenities available to students. In 2024, the university began construction of a dedicated women's dormitory within the campus.

History

Establishment

Before the University of Jordan was founded, Jordanians repeatedly called for establishing a national university. In the 1950s, many students pursued higher education abroad. In 1962, a British Army delegation met with the commanders of the Jordanian Army to negotiate terms for aid from the British government intended to help with the establishment of the University of Jordan. Before issuing the royal decree, King Hussein bin Talal discussed the project with Prime Minister Wasfi al-Tal, and they agreed to proceed. The king tasked al-Tal with leading the university's establishment. The royal decree stated:

On the Opening ceremony of the university, King Hussein bin Talal, accompanied by his convoy, Prince Hassan bin Talal, and Jordanian Prime Minister Wasfi al-Tal, arrived at the university. They were warmly welcomed by the university's president, Nasir al-Din al-Asad, the head of the Board of Trustees, Samir Al-Rifai, and other members of the Board of Trustees.

During a ceremony held on 17 April 1965, King Hussein was presented with the university's first degree, an honorary doctorate. In a speech at the university auditorium, King Hussein said that establishing the university had long been a national aspiration and expressed his pride at its realization:

With fervent and faithful words, I proudly declare, on behalf of the unified Jordanian family, the establishment of the University of Jordan in our beloved country on the second day of September 1962. Today, I stand here, grateful to God, witnessing the joyous celebration of the inauguration of our beloved university. It brings me great joy to hold its certificate, robe, and badge. I offer my heartfelt gratitude to the Almighty, whose power knows no bounds.

Early history

On 25 December 1965, the University of Jordan commenced its first day of teaching. At its inception, the university operated from three buildings with a budget of 50,000 dinars and eight faculty members, along with a small number of international professors. Early faculty included Nasir al-Din al-Asad, Abdul-Karim Gharaybeh, Fakher Aqel, Shawqi Daif, and Hashim Yaghi. The sole college was the Faculty of Arts, and enrollment was 167 students, including 17 female students.

In its early years, the administration expanded infrastructure and added new faculties. In 1965, the School of Science and the School of Economics and Commerce were established alongside the School of Arts.

Jordanian media in late 1962 referred to the University of Jordan as "the Mother University". It was the first university established in the country. Early activities included the Samir Al-Rifai Theater hosting the first Jordanian theater production and a Department of Sociology initiative credited as the first Jordanian community project. The university also introduced a credit hour system, cited as the first in the Arab world. In its early years, it was organized as a state university that operated independently of the government, with scientific, financial, and administrative autonomy.

Academics

Schools

The University of Jordan offers undergraduate and postgraduate programs. It has 78 undergraduate programs and 143 postgraduate programs which are divided into 109 master's degrees, and 34 doctoral degrees. Faculties are organized into three streams: Scientific faculties, Humanitarian faculties, and Medical (Health) faculties.

Scientific faculties

The scientific faculties include the School of Science, School of Agriculture, School of Engineering, and the King Abdullah II School of Information Technology. These faculties collectively cover the natural and applied sciences, from fundamental scientific disciplines (in the School of Science) and agricultural studies (in the School of Agriculture) to various engineering fields and information technology programs. The School of Engineering, established in 1975, has grown to be the university's largest faculty. It comprises departments in civil, electrical, mechanical, chemical, industrial, and other engineering areas; notably, by 2021 all its departments had attained ABET accreditation. The King Abdullah II School for Information Technology (KASIT) was founded in 2000 under the patronage of King Abdullah II. It focuses on computer science and IT education and was created to advance the information technology sector in Jordan.

Humanitarian faculties

The university has ten humanities faculties. Most of the humanities faculties are located in the northern part of the university. They encompass a broad range of non-scientific disciplines and professional fields. This group includes the School of Arts, School of Sharia (Islamic studies), School of Business, School of Educational Sciences, School of Law, and School of Physical Education, as well as the School of Arts and Design, Prince Al Hussein Bin Abdullah II School of International Studies, School of Foreign Languages, and School of Archaeology and Tourism.

The first school in the history of Jordan is the School of Arts. It is a leading center for humanities, social sciences, and literature, while the School of Sharia (established in 1964 as the university's fourth college) focuses on Islamic theology and jurisprudence. The School of Business, founded in 1965, comprises seven departments (such as management, finance, and accounting) and was the first public university business school in Jordan to achieve AACSB accreditation. The School of Physical Education (also known as the School of Sport Sciences) provides programs in sports science and physical training. Specialized schools like the School of Arts and Design (established 2002) foster fine arts and design education, and the Prince Al Hussein Bin Abdullah II School of International Studies (established 2008) is dedicated to politics and international relations. It is one of the only academic institutions in Jordan specializing in those fields in English. Also, the School of Foreign Languages offers degree programs in a variety of languages and literature. Other faculties in this category include the School of Archaeology and Tourism, the School of Educational Sciences and the School of Law.

Jordan university hospital

Jordan University Hospital (JUH) is a public teaching and research hospital in Amman. It was founded in 1973 under the name Grand Amman Hospital. It became the country's first university teaching hospital in 1975 when it was incorporated into the University of Jordan and renamed Jordan University Hospital. JUH offers a comprehensive range of medical services across numerous specialties and has introduced advanced procedures such as cochlear implants and bone marrow transplants. It also serves as a major center for medical education and research. It provides clinical training for medical, nursing, and allied health students, and it supports postgraduate specialist training. Notably, JUH was the first hospital in the Arab region (and the second in the Middle East) to achieve accreditation from the Joint Commission International (JCI) and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP). It also has affiliations with King Hussein Cancer Center, which was the first Cancer Center outside of the United States to be accredited by the JCI Disease Specific Certification (DSC) in November 2007.

Scientific research

Scientific collections

The university research facilities contain collections of historic documents and manuscripts as well as fossil remains that are considered to be of valuable importance for the scientific community, "to provide primary and secondary sources for researchers", among which are the world's only discovered fossil bones of Arambourgiania.

Jordan university press

According to Nature journal, Jordan has the highest number of researchers per million people in the Arab World, and the 30th worldwide. In its objective to promote scientific research, the Jordanian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research established collaboration with the University of Jordan Deanship of Academic Research in the early 1990s to publish several internationally peer-reviewed scientific journals on the highest standards in applied and social sciences as well as medical and pharmaceutical sciences. These journals are:

Jordan Medical Journal (ISSN 0446-9283) a peer refereed journal for researches in medical sciences and molecular biology.

• Jordan Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences (ISSN 1995-7157)
• Jordan Journal of Business Administration
• Jordan Journal of Social Sciences
• Jordan Journal for History and Archaeology
• Jordan Journal of Agricultural Sciences

The University of Jordan Press issues the internationally peer-reviewed Dirasat Journal series, and several other journals in Arabic literature, Arabic and Middle Eastern history, and regional culture:

Aqlam Jadidah, a journal mainly for Arabic literature

The Cultural Journal, a quarterly published journal in Arabic, founded in 1983.

Dirasat Journal Series:

• Agricultural Sciences (ISSN 1026-3764)
• Human and Social Sciences (ISSN 1026-3721)
• Administrative Sciences (ISSN 1026-373X)
• Educational Sciences (ISSN 1026-3713)
• Engineering Sciences (ISSN 1026-3764)
• Shari'a and Law Sciences (ISSN 1026-3748)
• Pure Sciences (ISSN 1560-456X)

Rankings

The University of Jordan has the highest admission scores for most majors in the country. According to the 2021 Webometrics Ranking of World Universities, it was the top ranked university in Jordan and the number 11 university in the Arab world.

In 2022, QS ranked the university in the 591 – 600 band in the world with 5 stars rating, 101 – 450 by subject rankings, tenth in the Arab world and 301 – 500 in graduate employability globally. In the same year, Times Higher Education ranked the university within the 801 – 1000 band globally, 179th for BRICS and Emerging Economies, 250 – 300 in Asian university rankings, and 22nd for Arab University Rankings 2021.

In 2022, the University of Jordan ranked in the 701 – 800 band in Shanghai Academic Ranking of World Universities, and in 151 – 500 band for various subject rankings.

International affiliations and agreements

Bilateral agreements

The University of Jordan has hundreds of agreements mostly for student exchange programs, of which 16 agreements are with universities in the United States such as Vanderbilt University and Murray State University.

Affiliations

• International Association of Universities
• Federation of the Universities of the Islamic World
• Mediterranean Universities Union
• Association of Arab Universities

Students

The University of Jordan Student Union is the University's student body.

The regulations governing the Student Union have been subject to several revisions and major changes since its conception. The latest version of these regulations was written by a committee of both students (Hamdoon Khateeb, Malek Khalaileh, Khaled Gabba, Yasmeen AbuTaleb, Issam Khoury) and faculty members (Dr. Ali Mahafzah, Dr. Ali Badran, Dr. Ali Sawwa) and put into effect in 2008.

Alumni

Notable professors and faculty

The University of Jordan's faculty has included scholars and public figures across several fields. Nasir al-Din al-Asad, a founding faculty member, served as the university's first president (1962–1968) and later as Jordan's minister of higher education. Abdelsalam al-Majali, a physician and former university president, later served twice as prime minister. Kamel Abu Jaber, professor of political science and former dean, was appointed foreign minister. Mohammad S. Obaidat, a professor at the King Abdullah II School of Information Technology, is an IEEE Life Fellow. Some sources report rankings placing him among leading scholars in telecommunications and cybersecurity.

In the sciences, Shaher Momani is known for work in fractional calculus. Jordanian press reported that he was "nominated" for the 2016 Nobel Prize in Physics, and he has appeared in lists of leading researchers in the field. Rankings place him among the global top 2% and identify him as a top-ranked Arab mathematician. The late Ali H. Nayfeh, who taught in mechanical engineering, was the inaugural winner of the Thomas K. Caughey Dynamics Award, and was awarded the Benjamin Franklin Medal in mechanical engineering.

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