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Welcome speech by the newly appointed President of NU, Professor Waqar Ahmad
On July 1, President Waqar Ahmad introduced himself and his vision for Nazarbayev University, to an audience of University students, faculty, staff and stakeholders. Professor Ilesanmi Adesida and Mr. Sayasat Nurbek, Minister for Science and Higher Education, introduced the new President.
In his speech he committed to building on the University’s achievements, to make it an outstanding institution that is respected on the world stage.
President Ahmad thanked Acting President and Provost, Ilesanmi Adesida, for “holding the fort” and ensuring that the new President can step into a well-managed and strong institution.
Great universities do not appear accidentally, and senior officials do not make universities great. It is the entire NU community of faculty, students, staff, stakeholders, and academic partners across the world who collectively make the University great, he said.
Professor Ahmad intends to work with the community to build a University which the country can be proud of, and which is an engine of progress and a catalyst for higher education reform in the region. NU will make a sustained and substantial contribution to the creation of knowledge, to the development of talented leaders, and to transformational change in the society and the economy. President Ahmad thanked everyone for their dedication, and expressed his plans to build on their hard work in the years to come.
As a British academic with a background in sociology and social policy, his work has been widely published and recognised through his election to the prestigious Academy of Social Sciences. With experience in academic leadership positions in some of the top universities in the UK, President Ahmad brings extensive academic leadership expertise. He has worked at the Universities of Bradford, York and Leeds, was Deputy Vice Chancellor, Middlesex University and most recently was Chancellor (President) of Abu Dhabi University. Visiting Professorships at University College London, London School of Economics and University of York have extended his academic networks and expertise. His educational policy background has been enhanced as a member or chair of the boards and research funding panels of the UK’s Research Councils, the Higher Education Funding Council of England and the National Health Service Research and Development Committees.
Professor Ahmad has also had the chance to connect theory and practice in his role as Chief Social Scientist at the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
Many people have asked him how Abu Dhabi University (ADU) made such rapid progress during his tenure as President. His answer is to be clear about what to achieve, how and by when and ensure that governance, resources and structures are aligned to the strategy. Develop and apply a robust framework for faculty hiring development, appraisal and promotion. Invest in developing talent across academic and professional and technical staff, with an uncompromising commitment to all-round excellence. Involve students in the University’s governance. Use data to track progress and to adjust direction if necessary. Create structures and cultures to promote excellence. Working as a community needs to be prized. People can make mistakes; however, incompetence or insolence cannot be tolerated. He noted that ADU’s standing among the top institutions in the Times Higher Education (THE) ranking (251-300), in THE’s Young universities ranking (top 60) and in THE Reputation ranking (125) is the result of collective community commitment.
He aims to work with the NU community to achieve the same here, but on a larger scale and with better resources, and he plans to celebrate successes as a community.
When he was asked why he was interested in leading NU, he explained that he was impressed with NU’s reputation, ambition, research performance, quality of students, and commitment to academic freedom. President Ahmad noted that NU’s commitment to supporting the development of the country and region, including higher education and health services, chimed with his own commitment to reforming public services in his role as Chief Social Scientist.
He concluded by applauding the Kazakhstan government for having the vision to create this fantastic, precocious, ambitious, independent institution. Kazakhstani leadership recognised the critical importance of world-class, research-intensive, academically independent institutions for national and regional prosperity and for gaining respect on the world stage.
In summary, the key to NU’s success is an unstinting commitment to academic excellence: world-class research underpinning exceptional teaching and contributing to national and regional development. The current ranking of 501-600 in the THE international league tables and having 22 subjects ranked in the Times Higher Subject Rankings are pleasing, but we will not rest on this, he said. “Through enhancements of all we do, we will improve on these rankings,” he said. The backbone of success will be outstanding faculty, students and staff, financial backing of the government, support from stakeholders and partnerships with the world’s best universities.
He stated: “NU must strive to be among the best globally. We know the recipe; we now need to get into the kitchen and cook ourselves a world-class NU! As we do that, we will stimulate improvements in higher education across Kazakhstan and the region, and we will contribute greatly to Kazakhstan’s development.”
Finally, President Ahmad thanked Minister Sayasat Nurbek for his unstinting support for the University and for generous funding for the future. President Ahmad looks forward to working with all the NU community.