Bahraini authorities said more than 95 per cent of construction work has been completed on the first purpose-built American-style campus which will soon be home to the new American University of Bahrain (AUBH).

The university’s main structures have been completed and the internal furnishings are currently being installed. The institution will be ready for full handover in early August.

Located in the Riffa area of the kingdom, the AUBH campus boasts easy access from two main highways and is conveniently located near many restaurants and stores.

Built on a 75,000-sq-m plot of land, the campus was designed by US-based global master-planners and architects Ayers Saint Gross (ASG), which is renowned for designing many prominent US university campuses with a student-centric focus.

The campus buildings form a welcoming, aesthetically pleasing, and open design that encourages interaction and recreation. Its innovative and ergonomic design complements the magnificent and sweeping structures to enhance the learning and social experience for the student and faculty communities alike, said the statement from AUBH.

Water designs adorn the campus’s landscape, creating a learning oasis with lush green colours in the middle of the desert, it stated.

The modern-structured buildings include a welcome centre for administration and student services, an “Academic Quad” with four dedicated three-storey academic buildings, one for each college.

The campus also boasts a sports centre with a full gym and basketball court, an outdoor football field, and a student commons where students will enjoy social time outside the classroom.

The academic buildings house fully-equipped interdisciplinary labs and studios, high-tech lecture halls and classrooms, seminar and case study rooms, an extensive and innovative library, and a grand auditorium built for over 250 visitors.  

Dr Susan E Saxton, the founding president of AUBH, expressed delight in achieving this milestone.

"We are excited to see our beautiful campus come to life and to welcome the inaugural class of 2019 in September. The AUBH campus is unique in so many ways; we want to bring a truly American-style experience to the region and establish a model of international quality standards that will support the students’ life-long educational journey," she noted.

"AUBH was created to support the kingdom’s efforts in upscaling the country’s academic quality and advancing its status as an educational role model for the Arab region; in this regard, we designed a campus that would support educational excellence and assist students in excelling to great heights in their chosen profession," she added.

Senior associate at ASG Michelle Moseley said: "It give us great pleasure to work on this first-of-a-kind university in Bahrain and bring the American-style campus to life."

"Inspired by the culture of the region, our aim was to create an environment that would enhance the student experience and create a space for students, faculty and staff to connect," he added.-TradeArabia News Service