Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) has revealed a new unified brand identity and a new website, as it published details of its 10-year strategic plan.

The brand reveal comes after a period of major growth for the university that saw the launch of several new colleges, programs within the university, and the enhancement of existing programs and centers.

Since its formation in 2010, HBKU has built a solid reputation of academic excellence through a growing roster of innovative programs, each tailored to suit the needs of Qatar and the region, and each designed to utilize the significant and expanding research capabilities of the University. The HBKU Strategic Plan 2016-2026, focuses on four pillars – excellence, people, innovation and partners – and highlights the need to further integrate the University’s specialized, multidisciplinary academic programs and research activities to create an innovative, interdependent ecosystem. This assimilation is mirrored in HBKU’s new brand identity, which unites the University’s various components within one consistent, singular identity.

Her Excellency Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani commented: “While HBKU will forever be firmly rooted in its Qatari heritage, the launch of a new brand identity marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for the University. HBKU’s new identity reflects its innovative approach to offering students high-quality research-based education, while the ten-year plan will help ensure the University’s development is in line with its strategic objectives and matched to the economic and cultural needs of the nation.”

The new brand is the result of significant consultation with stakeholders across the University and also with the leadership of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development (QF), of which HBKU is a member. The new HBKU logo is based on one of the prominent geometric shapes found in Islamic architecture: the triangle. Patterns based on the triangle can be seen extensively across the HBKU buildings within Education City, linking HBKU to Islamic heritage and culture while also signifying an embedded intellectualism. It also contains a beautiful combination of the initial letters of the University’s name, HBKU, in both Arabic and Latin characters, signifying the University’s role as a locally focused but globally minded academic institution.

A new tagline “Innovating today… shaping tomorrow” captures HBKU’s commitment to be at the cutting edge of education and research in order to be best help grow and strengthen Qatar’s knowledge-based economy in line with Qatar National Vision 2030.

HBKU President, Dr. Ahmad M. Hasnah noted: “At HBKU we are committed to building a tightly integrated ecosystem and working across the lines of academia, research, and industry to support human, economic, and social development in Qatar and beyond. We are fortunate to be a home to ambitious students, highly published academics, and pioneering researchers. The new brand personality aligns the various components of the University and reflects our recent growth, bringing HBKU’s colleges, research institutes, and centers closer together and visually representing our heritage, aspirations, and values to the world.”

In harmony with its efforts over the past few years, the University plans to further expand and diversify its offerings, launching new integrated, multidisciplinary, research-based programs over the coming years to add value to Qatar’s academic landscape. Graduate studies will continue to be emphasized at HBKU, targeting the skills gap in strategic industries vital to the region’s development.

The University’s strategic plan also highlights an increase in research activities by its colleges and institutes in the areas of energy, water, the environment, health and life sciences, computing, law and public policy, humanities, and social science.  HBKU will work closely with existing and new partners to tackle Qatar’s Grand Challenges and prioritize economic development, attracting leading faculty and scientists to its campus in Education City.

The University currently has around 500 students, 43 per cent of whom are Qatari. HBKU offers a diverse array of specialized programs in areas such as cyber security, data science, sustainability, biological and biomedical sciences, law, translation studies, Islamic studies, and Islamic finance.  Research efforts are spread across all five of its colleges and across its three research institutes

In addition to HBKU’s colleges and research institutes, the University’s Center of Executive Education is developing a range of customized programs for the public and private sectors in Qatar and beyond, and HBKU’s publishing arm, HBKU Press, is playing a crucial role in helping disseminate the knowledge gained and insights made by HBKU researchers throughout the region and world.