Majan University College, Institutional Standards Assessment, Dec 2016
 
Dr Ahmed Al Ghassani
 

Dr Ahmed has published more than twenty papers in internationally refereed journals and conference proceedings. He is also member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and Oman Society of Engineers (OSE).Dr Ahmed Al Ghassani obtained a BEng Degree in Civil Engineering from Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) in 1993. He worked with Dhofar Municipality as Civil Engineer then Quantity Surveyor for a few years during which he was involved in several prestigious projects. In 1997 he took up the post as an Assistant Lecturer in Salalah College of Technology. This was followed by a postgraduate program leading to an MSc in Structural Engineering at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST) in UK (1998-1999). He joined Loughborough University (UK) to do his PhD on Improving the Structural Design Process using Knowledge Management in June 2000, after receiving a scholarship funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC, UK)). He was awarded a PhD degree in May 2003 and later in 2004, he worked as Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs in Al Musana College of Technology. From 2005-2010, he was the Dean of Nizwa College of Technology and until 2013 was the Dean of the Higher College of Technology in Muscat.  Since May 2013, Dr Ahmed has been the Dean of the College of Banking and Financial Studies.


 
Dr. Bastian Baumann
 
Bastian Baumann is the Managing Director of EQAA, the European Quality Assurance Agency and Managing Partner of Shbeemann Consulting, a boutique education consultancy firm. He has been working as consultant on higher education and vocational education for more than 20 years and across more than 60 countries His main areas of work are strategic management and development and higher education reform implementation, including quality assurance, qualifications frameworks, innovative forms of learning and teaching and national and institutional strategies. Bastian regularly works as a consultant for ministries, universities, quality assurance agencies and other organizations in different countries. He designed national and institutional quality assurance system In addition, he works as a reviewer for quality assurance agencies in various countries and also provides trainings for reviewers. He is also the author of the feasibility study that led to the establishment of the European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education (EQAR) He was actively involved in the establishment of the European Higher Education Area, including representation in the Bologna Follow-Up Group. He helped establishing the European Qualifications Framework and the Qualifications Framework for the EHEA as well as several National Qualifications Frameworks in Europe, Africa and the Middle East Until 2011 he was the Secretary General of the Magna Charta Observatory of Fundamental University Values and Rights based in Bologna, Italy. Previously, he has been a member of the executive board of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). 

 
Prof. Martin Henson
 
Martin Henson is a Higher Education Consultant based in the UK.  He is a former Professor of Computer Science at the University of Essex in the UK, where he was Dean of International Development. Between 2000 and 2006 he was Head of the School of Computer Science and Electronic Systems Department. Martin has extensive accreditation experience in the Gulf region, having been involved in more than 50 program and institutional accreditations, mainly in the UAE, but also in Saudi Arabia. For periods during 2007 and 2008 he worked for the UAE Ministry if Higher Education’s Commission of Academic Accreditation as a Consultant Commissioner, aiding with the revision of the UAE Standards for Accreditation and Licensure, and leading their strategic planning project. Professor Henson has recently given keynote addresses on outcomes-based curriculum development, and on institutional research strategic planning in Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. His other recent international consultancy has included Jordan, Kuwait, the West Indies and Sweden. His research activities focus on formal methods for software engineering, in the last ten years concentrating especially on specification logics for languages such as Z. He the author/editor of several books, and has published more than 100 articles in the area. His most recent contribution concerns the specification logic nuZ, and is included in the Springer monograph: “Formal Methods: State of the Art and New Directions”.
 
Prof. Nouria Al-Awadi
 

Prof. Nouria Al-Awadi graduated from Kuwait University in 1976, and obtained Ph.D. in Chemistry from Kent University (UK), in 1979.  She joined Chemistry Department as Assistant Professor in 1979,  became Associate Professor in 1986, and Professor in 1991. In 1986,  she was Student Affairs Vice Dean, in 1993, Head, Chemistry department,  and in 1995,  Dean, Science Faculty.  She established Life Sciences, Earth & Environmental Sciences departments, ANALAB, and Science Analytical Facilities, for advanced research.  In 2006, she became Vice President for Academic Affairs, setting academic  policy and procedures.  Prof. Nouria is dynamic researcher, with  14 research grants, 31 projects, and 148 publications,   111 of which in JCR-Indexed journals.  She authored  “Crime of academic robbery,” and  received US Registered Patent.  In 2011,  IUPAC  declared  her Distinguished Woman in Chemistry & Chemical Engineering. She is honored with  several prestigious awards,   and has membership  of several  professional Associations, besides being  founder Member of Kuwait Chemical Society.  Since 2012,  Prof. Nouria is the first Director General  of  National  Bureau for Academic Accreditation & Education Quality Assurance (NBAQ), with mandate to transform State’s higher education vision at par with   international standards, a strategic mission, receiving  her   top attention, efforts, and energy.