About Aku
Aksum is a city in the Northern part of Ethiopia and the county town of origin of civilization with the current population of around 57,000. It is the oldest city and continuously inhabited places in the country as well as in Africa. The city is situated in Central Tigray, Ethiopia, and its geographical coordinates are 14° 7' 47" North, Latitude , 38°43′24″ E 38° 42' 57" East Longitude with an elevation of 2,131 meters (6,991ft).
Aksum is known worldwide as the possible home of the Ark of the Covenant, in which lie the tablets of law upon which the Ten Commandments are inscribed. It is considered to be the holiest city in Ethiopia which hosts Old and New Cathedrals of St. Mary of Zion. The two cathedrals and the chapel of the Ark are an important destination of pilgrimages. Among the significant religious festivals the festivity of Timkat (known as Epiphany in Western Christianity) which is celebrated on 19 January (20 January in leap years) and the Festival of Maryam Zion on November 24.
Besides, the Stelas in Aksum demonstrate notable examples of the major Aksumite monuments in the town dated from 5000-2000BCE.
Aksum is rich in archeological heritage sites including the Ezana Stone written in Sabaean, Geez and Ancient Greek, Bazen’s tomb, Queen of Sheba’s Bath, Ta’akha Maryam (4th century), Dungur palaces (6th century), the monasteries of Abba Pentalewon and Abba Liqanos. Aksum archeological sites registered in 1980 by UNESCO as world heritage sites due to their historic value. Currently, Aksum is also known as the home of Aksum University.
Aksum University is a public institution founded in May 2006 on a green field site specifically called Sofoho, four kilometers (2.45 miles) South-West from the center of the town. The name Aksum University is named after the city of Aksum. The current area of the university is 107 hectares, with ample room for expansion. The inauguration ceremony was held on 16 February 2007. At the beginning of 2007, the university housed approximately more than 700 undergraduate students who enrolled in five facilities: Social Science and Languages, Agriculture, Business and Economics, Natural and Computational Science and Engineering and Technology in the campus. In 2011, faculty of Agriculture moved to a new campus on TVET Agriculture in Shire.
Aksum University has campuses in Aksum and Shire. The university encompasses variety colleges, schools, and institutions which are organized into three campuses: Main, Referral and Shire campuses.
Main campus hosts College of Social Sciences, College of Natural and Computational Science, College of Business and Economics, College of Engineering and Technology, School of Education and Behavioral Science and Institution of Tourism, Archeology and History. Referral campus, which is nearest to the main campus, includes College of Health Science and Referral Hospital. Finally, Shire Campus hosts College of Agriculture, School of Mining and School of Water Technology.
The university offers undergraduate and postgraduate programs like medicine, law, social sciences, languages, natural science, computational science, agriculture and business and economics. Collectively, the colleges, institutions and schools offer 44 Bachelor's programs and 19 Master's programs.
Enrollment is expanding so rapidly that by 2017, the university has total enrollment of 23405 students from which 12722 undergraduate students and 139 master's students are registered in regular program, and 9142 undergraduate students and 1402 master's students are enrolled in continuing education program. The university is also staffed with 1074 academic and 1569 administrative staffs.
To conclude, Aksum University, under the plan of Ministry of Education is one the ten public higher educational institutions known as Second generation universities in Ethiopia.
Campuses and colleges
Main Campus
1. College of Engineering and Technology
Undergraduate Programs:
- Civil Engineering
- Computing Technology
- Mechanical engineering
- Textile Engineering
- Electrical and computer engineering
- Construction Management Technology
Post graduate programs:
- Information Technology
2. College of Natural & Computational Sciences
Undergraduate Programs:
- Physics
- Chemistry
- Biology
- Sport science
- Mathematics
- Statistics and
- Biotechnology
Post graduate programs:
- Bio Technology
- Micro Biology
- Bio Chemistry
- Chemistry
- Mathematics
- Physics
3. College of Social Sciences & Languages
Undergraduate Programs:
- Political science and international relations
- Law
- English Language and Literature
- Ethiopian languages and Literature (Amharic)
- Theatre Arts
- Journalism and Communication
- Geography and Environmental studies
Post graduate programs:
- Geography and Environmental study
- Applied Linguistics in Teaching Amharic
- Teaching English as a Foreign Language
4. College of Business and Economics
Undergraduate Programs:
- Accounting and Finance
- Banking and Finance
- Management
- Marketing management
- Logistics and supply Chain management
- Economics
- Cooperative management
Post graduate programs:
- Financial and Developmental Economics
- Accounting and audit
- MBA
5. Institution of Archaeology and Tourism
Undergraduate Programs:
- Archaeology and Heritage Management
- History and Heritage Management
- Tourism management
- Hotel management
Post graduate programs:
- Tourism Management
- Archaeology and Heritage Management
- History
6. School of Education and Behavioural Science
Undergraduate Programs:
- Psychology
- Teacher Education
Post graduate programs:
- Developmental Psychology
Referral Campus
7. College of Health Science
Undergraduate Programs:
- Medicine
- Nursing
- Public Health
- Midwifery
- Psychiatric nursing
- Anaesthesia
- Neonatal nursing
- Medical laboratory science
- Pharmacy
- Surgical nursing
Post graduate programs:
- Public Health
Shire Campus
8. College of Agriculture
Undergraduate Programs:
- Animal Production and technology
- Soil resource and water shed management
- Agro Economics
- Plant science
Post graduate programs:
- Agribusiness and value chain management
- Horticulture
- API Culture
9. School of mines
Undergraduate Programs:
- Mining Engineering
- Mineral Processing and Metallurgic Engineering
- Geology
10. School of water technology
- Hydraulics and water Resources engineering
- Water Resources and Irrigation engineering
Michaele Abraha , Board Chairman
Management Council
Tsehaye Asmelash (PhD), President
Kiros Guesh (PhD), Vice President for Academic Affairs
Ato Negash Araya, Vice President for Administration and Students’ Affair
Misgina G/hiwet (PhD), Vice President for Research and Community Service
Mulugeta Fitwi(PhD), Shire Campus Coordinator
Tewolde Wubayehu(MD), Chief Executive Director(CHS&RH)
Kahsay G/Hiwot, Students’ Service Directorate Director
Assisted By
Research and Postgraduate Studies Directorate
Community Service and Technology Transfer Directorate
Corporate Communication and Marketing Directorate
Assistant for the President
Assistant for Administrative and Students’ Affair Vice President
Assistant for Academic Affairs Vice President
Academic Programs Directorate Director
Ethics and Anti-Corruption Directorate
Internal audit Directorate
Legal Service Directorate
Human Resources Management and Development Directorate
Institutional Quality Assurance Directorate
Continuing Education and Training coordinator Directorate
Registrar and Alumni Directorate
Procurement and Property Administration Directorate
Youth and Women’s Affairs Directorate
Facility Development Directorate
Institutional planning, Budget & Performance monitoring Directorate
Students’ Service Directorate
Entrepreneurship Development Directorate
HIV&SRH (Sexual Reproductive Health) Directorate
Information & communication Technology Directorate
Sefiho Business enterprise Directorate
Change management Directorate
Finance and Budget Directorate
Library & Documentation Directorate
Construction Project Office