Allama Iqbal Open University
(AIOU) is located in Islamabad, Pakistan. The university started as a language institute in 1974. During the last 30 years, it has matured into a national university offering various programs through non-formal education systems throughout the country. The main objectives of the university are to provide facilities to people who cannot leave jobs and home for their educational uplift. It offers a wide range of undergraduate, graduate, masters, MPhil and doctoral programs in the areas of teacher education, science, business management, languages, and computer science. The university has also developed a number of short term educational programs. At present, AIOU relies heavily on various types of available media to teach students in an effective manner.
AIOU is the first Open University in Asia. The University, with its main campus at Islamabad and huge network of regional centers spread all over the country, serves clientel all over Pakistan and the Middle East. AIOU is a Distance Education institution, which provides multi-disciplinary education from basic to doctoral level programs.
In 2000, AIOU started a Bachelor of Engineering (Telecommunications) program in collaboration with Institute of Engineering and Technology, a chain of private educational and research institutions . This program is a full time regular program like any other professional Engineering degree program. This makes Allama Iqbal Open University the second university of Pakistan and Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET) the first private sector institute in Pakistan that started a Bachelor of Engineering( Telecommunications) program.The AIOU-IET collaboration has produced hundreds of Telecomm engineering graduates who are serving in different organizations across the country and abroad.
[edit] Objectives
The main objectives of the University as enunciated in the Act are:
1. To provide educational facilities to people who cannot leave their homes and jobs in such manner as it may determine.
2. To provide such facilities to the masses for their educational uplift as it may determine.
3. To provide facilities for the training of teachers in such manner as it may determine.
4. To provide for instruction in such branches of learning technology or vocations as it may deem fit, and to make provision for research and for the advancement and dissemination of knowledge in such manner as it may determine.
5. To hold examinations and to award and confer degrees, diplomas, certificates and other academic distinctions.
