The Arab Open University

The Arab Open University is a private, non-profit Arab university that offers higher education programs using blended learning methods and technologies. It was founded by Prince Talal Bin Abdulaziz in 2002, in partnership with the Open University in the United Kingdom. Its main campus is located in Riyadh City, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and it has several branches in the Kingdom and other Arab countries.

The idea for the Arab Open University began with its founder, Prince Talal Bin Abdulaziz, in 1996, when he announced an initiative to establish the university as a non-traditional academic and educational entity, a developmental institution, and a non-profit project aimed at contributing to development in scientific, social, and cultural fields and supporting the building of individuals in Arab communities. This initiative evolved in 2002 into a fully integrated university in the Kingdom and nine other Arab countries, through a joint collaboration with the Open University in the United Kingdom.

The Arab Open University has fifteen branches, with nine branches in Arab countries and six branches within the Kingdom. It has received several international and local accreditations, including from the Open University in the United Kingdom, the Saudi Ministry of Education, and the Saudi Education and Training Evaluation Commission. The university offers a blended learning system, which is equivalent to the regular education system in the Saudi Ministry of Education. This system aims to achieve efficient and high-quality educational outcomes and to enable various segments of society to access higher education. The blended system combines traditional education through direct classrooms with e-learning methods via virtual classrooms.

The Arab Open University in Riyadh celebrated the graduation of 3,500 male and female students in its sixteenth cohort from all its branches in the Kingdom for the academic year 2020-2021. Over twenty years, the university has prepared graduates capable of contributing to the development of their countries in scientific, social, and cultural fields. Since its establishment, it has served around 270,000 individuals and graduated approximately seventy thousand, most of whom are women. The university has welcomed all segments of society regardless of their economic and social conditions, at any time and place.

The blended learning system and the quality of the curricula at the Arab Open University have encouraged students from various nationalities to join. Since its inception, the university has attracted students from 133 nationalities, spanning six continents. Saudi students make up the largest portion of the university's student body at 64 percent, followed by Yemeni students at 8 percent, and Syrian students at 6.6 percent, according to an announcement on the university's website in 2022.

The Arab Open University comprises four faculties: the Faculty of Business Studies, which offers four tracks: Administrative Systems, Marketing, Accounting, and a Bachelor’s in Accounting in Arabic; and the Faculty of Computer Studies, which offers four tracks: Computer Science, Computing and Business, Web Development, and Network Security. The Faculty of Language Studies offers a Bachelor's program in English Language and Literature, and the Applied College provides training and professional programs in various fields to meet the needs of the job market.