Azernews.Az

By Amina Nazarli

A solemn ceremony was organized in Baku to inaugurate a new building of the Azerbaijan-French University (UFAZ).

Education Minister Mikayil Jabbarov, addressing the ceremony on September 15, named the day as significant for cooperation between Azerbaijan and France.

Saying that education plays a special role in the formation of relations in the 21st century, the minister noted the number of appeals related to admission to the UFAZ has increased.

"We expect high academic results from the students, we want them to contribute to the development of the Azerbaijani-French relations," Jabbarov said.

Jabbarov went on to say that the Azerbaijan State University of Oil and Industry, involved in the UFAZ project, contributed to development of the oil and gas industry in the country.

UFAZ was established in 2016, as the University of Strasbourg and Azerbaijan State University of Oil and Industry signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on establishment of the University.

The minister further added that discussions are currently underway for organization of the master's program at the Azerbaijan-France University.

“The decision will be made taking into account the potential of the Universities involved in the project," the minister said.

Minister of State attached to the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne also took part in the ceremony.

“I graduated from Strasbourg University. I wish you the same pleasure that I received from studying at this university,” he said at the event.

“Your country is rich in natural resources. But the main wealth is the knowledge of man. Therefore, both French and Azerbaijani students should try to meet the demands of the times in a rapidly changing world. We are very pleased that we were elected to implement the project. I also express my gratitude to Rector Mustafa Babanli for paying special attention to the implementation of this project,” said Lemoyne.

Lemoyne further mentioned that over the past two years, the UFAZ received about 300 students.

“This shows that this institution has already earned a certain authority. We are very pleased with this indicator,” he said.

Offering a four-year degree program, UFAZ trains young specialists in cutting-edge fields such as computer science, geophysics, chemical engineering, and oil and gas engineering.

In the 2017-2018 academic year, some 283 students will receive education in four specialties, while 240 of them will receive a state scholarship.

Classes for students will be first in English, and then in French, which means that University graduates can be provided with jobs in Azerbaijani, English and French companies.

University graduates will be issued a double diploma -- University of Strasbourg and ASOIU (the first three specialties) and the University of Renn1 and ASOIU (the last specialty).

--

Amina Nazarli is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz