Our Vision

A New Era

AUAF continues to educate many hundreds of students in Afghanistan and among the diaspora, online and in person at Education City in Doha, Qatar. As their need multiplies, our commitment intensifies – to delivering the highest academic quality, to equal opportunity for women, and to a better, more just society.

Online education offers hope and opportunity to women barred from universities inside Afghanistan’s borders. AUAF’s new operations in Qatar provide safety and freedom to those whose studies have taken them abroad but whose hearts remain in their communities at home. All come together in hybrid classrooms fostering critical thinking, civic engagement, and career readiness.

Nowhere else can young Afghan women and men receive an international, accredited education tailored to their diverse and distinctive heritage and attuned to their unique perspectives. Until the day we return to our campuses in Kabul, AUAF lives in the minds of its students and the accomplishments of its alumni – who prove what we have always believed, that education will prevail.

AUAF Global logo
  • Online Programs
  • Serving Students in Afghanistan & Abroad
AUAF Qatar logo
  • Undergraduate and
    Graduate Degree Programs
  • A New Life for AUAF at Education City
International Institute for Afghanistan Teaching & Learning logo
  • Research and
    Curriculum Development
  • Preserving Afghan History and Culture

Our Mission

The American University of Afghanistan empowers rising leaders with knowledge, skills, and agency to define their own individual and collective futures.

As a beacon of educational quality and academic freedom, AUAF embraces equal opportunity for women and minorities, preserves and amplifies Afghan history and culture, and creates connections between Afghanistan and global society through teaching, learning, and research.

Our Values

Freedom & Responsibility
Promotion of Pluralistic Ideas
Free Expression & Inquiry
Equal
Opportunity
Individual
Rights
Personal & Professional Integrity
Success Stories: Empowering Afghan Futures: Sana Azizi’s Journey of Education and Advocacy

Success Stories

Empowering Afghan Futures: Sana Azizi’s Journey of Education and Advocacy

Sana Azizi, a junior at the American University of Afghanistan (AUAF), is dedicated to both her studies in Information Technology (IT) with a focus on Cybersecurity and her volunteer work. Notably, she played a pivotal role in educating Afghan university students about corruption through her work with the government organization AFCAC. Sana’s collaboration with a private university helped spread awareness and address this pressing issue.

Driven by a desire to contribute to her country’s future, Sana researches implementing Liberal Arts education in Afghanistan, inspired by AUAF’s model. Her relocation to Qatar has expanded her horizons, providing opportunities like participation in the debate club, which enhanced her communication skills and confidence. Now, as an AUAF ambassador, Sana aims to empower Afghan students, particularly females facing educational barriers, to pursue opportunities abroad. In her journey, education remains the ultimate weapon for progress in Afghanistan.

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Success Stories: Shafiqa’s University Adventure: A Journey of Growth

Success Stories

Shafiqa’s University Adventure: A Journey of Growth

My time at AUAF has been an incredible journey of personal growth, academic achievements, and lifelong friendships. From the moment I stepped onto campus, I was filled with excitement and nervousness, eager to explore my academic interests in political science & public administration. Classes became more than just lectures; they were opportunities for personal growth and critical thinking. Outside the classroom, AUAF provided countless opportunities for exploration and skill-building through student clubs, workshops, and research projects. Interacting with a diverse community of students from different backgrounds broadened my perspective and taught me the value of global citizenship.

Of course, the journey wasn’t without its challenges, but with support from friends, classmates, and mentors, I learned to overcome obstacles and grow stronger. Now, as I transition from student to mentor, I carry with me the lessons learned, the memories cherished, and the friendships made. I encourage others to embrace education, chase their passions, and embark on their transformative journeys at AUAF. With dedication and an open mind, anything is possible.

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Success Stories: Providing Mentorship Through His Student-Experience Leadership

Success Stories

Providing Mentorship Through His Student-Experience Leadership

Since 2019, Fahim Ahmadzai has been deeply involved in the educational excellence of the American University of Afghanistan (AUAF). Beginning with orchestrating new student orientations, Fahim’s passion for aiding others led him to a two-year commitment as a lead mentor for incoming students. Through these roles, Fahim honed his leadership skills and developed a knack for translating theoretical knowledge into practical applications, particularly in soft skills training.

Now a senior business student in Doha’s Education City, Fahim remains grateful for the opportunities provided by AUAF. Beyond personal success, he aspires to uplift his community through entrepreneurship, guided by the values of education and resilience. His message to newcomers echoes his journey: AUAF fosters dreams and aspirations, offering a transformative academic journey filled with support and opportunity.

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AUAF President Ian Bickford

President's Message

"We Would Choose Knowledge Over Fear; Strength Over Surrender; and Ingenuity Over Doubt."

Dear Friends,

I joined the AUAF community in the early spring of 2021 with the knowledge that change would inevitably come to Afghanistan and to a university that has faced many challenges in its short history – indeed, more than its share. What I found was a cohort of students, a leadership team, a faculty, and a professional staff whose resilience and ability to adapt surpassed any I’ve seen before. Nobody asks for adversity; but, when tested by it, we sometimes discover the best parts of ourselves. I was meeting a community at its best.

We anticipated the changes to come with the confidence that AUAF would adapt again to realities that might be hard but could be overcome. In August of that year, as these realities crystalized, we closed our two campuses in Kabul with heavy hearts but clarity of mission: we would choose knowledge over fear; strength over surrender; and ingenuity over doubt. When we decided in those early weeks to begin the fall semester online and on-time, it was our answer to skepticism and illiberalism, and we found our students no less ready to learn, no less ready to question, no less ready to use their voices than the day before Afghanistan’s dramatic change in political fortunes. Every day since, signing into classes in the shared pursuit of knowledge, they reaffirm this answer. Learning has never represented a greater act of courage.

AUAF is now a global university, with many of our students continuing their studies from sites outside Afghanistan, and faculty teaching online from around the world. Our new operations in Doha give us a place to stand; digital technology gives us the means to reach more students, in more places, and in more ways.

This global identity reflects the way Afghanistan has touched the world, bringing nations together in our aspirations to help an opening society over twenty years, yet also illuminating the divisions that hinder progress. We know more about the limits of military intervention to create meaningful change, even as we realize how little we knew about the currents that were drawing Afghanistan back to an authoritarian past. The new Afghan diaspora, deserving all the support we can muster, has much to teach us – about the richness and diversity of their cultural heritage, about the meaning and heartbreak of exile, and about what we can and must continue to do for the Afghan people.

We can and must continue to educate Afghanistan’s ambitious young women and men for leadership in their own society and in the world. We can and must continue to equip them with knowledge, skills, and agency to define their own individual and collective futures. We can and must ensure that their dreams for a more just, more equitable, more prosperous society do not end in obscurity.

Sincerely,

Ian Bickford
President

Board of Trustees

  • Amb. Said T. Jawad Chair
  • Mr. Emal Dusst First Vice Chair
  • Dr. Kerry Healey Second Vice Chair
  • Mr. Harvey S. Schochet Secretary
  • Mr. William Hammink Treasurer
  • Dr. Ian Bickford President
  • Dr. John Alexander
  • Mr. Farhad Azima
  • Mr. Christopher
    Nixon Cox
  • Mr. Christian Destremau
  • Ms. Malia K. Du Mont
  • Ms. Christine Drinan
  • Dr. David Edwards
  • Dr. Jonathan Fanton
  • Mr. Robert Gangi
  • Mr. Arsalan Lutfi
  • Ms. Leslie M. Schweitzer
  • Mr. David S. Sedney
  • Dr. Ayesha Sherzai
  • Ms. Hanaa Soltan
  • Ms. Alexian Wines
  • Mr. Sear Yagana
  • Ms. Debra Zumwalt

Administration

AUAF President Ian Bickford
Dr. Ian Bickford President
Victoria Fontan
Dr. Victoria Fontan Provost and Vice President
Academic Affairs

Make a Difference

With your support, we can help meet the unique needs of AUAF students, faculty, and staff.

Every day, AUAF’s students in Afghanistan set aside fear and uncertainty to sign into classes, joining our new global community in the pursuit of knowledge and opportunity. Learning has never represented a greater act of courage.

Your gift will directly and immediately support the next generation of leaders in Afghanistan. Help us provide 100% financial aid to every student who needs it. Help us restore opportunity for women and girls whose education has been stolen from them. Help us maintain the highest standard of quality for online teaching and learning. Help us connect our students to the world outside Afghanistan – technologically, socially and academically.

AUAF In the News
AUAF Event Photo Hillary Clinton

Events

Friends of AUAF hosts an annual fundraising event to corral support for the university and raise donations to ensure that students may continue their education, regardless of their ability to pay.

While the context for our annual event on October 6th, 2021, changed after August 15th, the purpose did not. Friends of AUAF raised an unprecedented amount in donations and the night proved to be successful in re-inaugurating our mission to educate young Afghan women and men for a future of their own making.

Resources