VCUQatar is the Qatar campus of the Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts. Established in 1998 through a partnership with Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, VCUQatar offers students the opportunity to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in fashion design, graphic design, interior design and painting & printmaking, a Bachelor of Arts degree in art history and a Master of Fine Arts degree in design studies.
Located in Doha, the capital city of Qatar, VCUQatar is fully accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art & Design, The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, and the Council for Interior Design Accreditation. The current student body represents a diverse range of nationalities with students coming from more than 40 different countries.
VCUQatar was the first campus established in Education City, a unique 2500-acre campus community. The university has since been joined by Weill Cornell Medical College, Texas A&M University, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, Carnegie-Mellon University, Northwestern University, HEC Paris, and University College London.
In 2010, VCUQatar more than doubled its facilities through a major expansion project. The expansion has allowed for the integration of the university’s undergraduate and graduate programs under one roof, the connection of the research and entrepreneurship offices with curricular programs, and the expansion of our technical spaces to support all forms of visualization and research with a media lab, digital fabrication lab, printmaking studios, photography studio, an expanded library and the first materials library in the region.
VCUQatar strives to provide an engaged, learner-centered environment that fosters inquiry, discovery and innovation in a global setting. The University hosts the biennial international design conference Tasmeem and the biennial Hamad bin Khalifa Islamic Art Symposium, attracting globally recognized designers, academics and thinkers while fostering sustainable, university-community partnerships that enhance the educational, economic and cultural vitality of Qatar.
VCUQatar has substantial involvement with the emerging design industries in Qatar and is a significant catalyst for that growth. It has established itself as a center of excellence for education and research in art and design.
VCUQatar graduates are pursuing successful careers within the government, nonprofit and private industries in Qatar and around the world. Many of our graduates have gone on to establish their own businesses, thereby contributing to the development of the small and medium enterprise culture in Qatar.
Click here to visit the VCUQatar web site
Click here to watch the Emmy Award winning student-produced VCUQatar documentary
Click here to read a 2009 article in the New York Times about Doha, Qatar
Click here to read a 2009 article in the Chronicle of Higher Education about Doha’s Education City
Qatar Support Office (QSO)
VCUarts established a Qatar Support Office in 2008 inside the Pollak Building on the Richmond campus. The QSO, as it’s known, provides a variety of administrative support including human resources, procurement and payroll/benefits. If you have a question about traveling to or working in Qatar, the new QSO should be your first stop.
