Under the Patronage of His Excellency Professor Riyadh Hamzah (Secretary General of the Higher Education Council in Bahrain), Applied Science University (ASU) has organised an official launch of three research-related publications.  The launch took place on 15 March 2016 and was headed by ASU’s  Chairman of BOT, Professor Waheeb Alkhaja,  and the University President, Professor Ghassan Aouad. These publications are flagships of the university, signifying its commitment to excellence in Research and Innovation.

The launch started with a speech by Prof. AlKhaja welcoming the delegates in which he reiterated the Board of Trustees continual encouragement and support for high quality education at ASU, which has to be underpinned by a solid foundation in research.  He went on to emphasise the significance of the launch and wishing the university all the success. This was followed with an excellent Keynote from Prof. Riyadh Hamzah where he congratulated the University for their Commitment to research and forward thinking by publishing not only one but also three important and significant publication. He then detailed  Bahrain’s priority research areas and how important creativity and innovation to Bahrain wealth generation.

Prof. Ghassan then took the floor and gave another excellent speech congratulating the staff for such an achievement. He went on to outline his vision for strengthening research capacity and leadership, and emphasized the importance of applied research and innovation meeting the Government’s priority areas and economic vision 2030.

The event was concluded by Prof. Zedan’s talk about the ‘Quest for Excellence” and that excellence is the backbone of the university. Excellence is all about contributing our best while evoking others to do the same; understanding our place in the world  and making our mark, as we attempt to make it a better place and it is about contribution and honouring others as we move forward towards our vision. He went on to give some key factors for excellence, namely, passion, integrity, commitment, high standards and self-awareness. Prof Zedan ended by launching the three publication:

• The Journal of Applied Science University – which is a scientific journal aims to publish all aspects of applied sciences research. All articles are rigorously refereed through a double-blind process. The journal also welcome State-of-The –Art surveys and reviews. The Journal is governed and managed by an Advisory Board, which decide on its technical direction and determine the main (sub-) discipline of each issue. Members are International scholars and World-Class researchers. Each issue has an International Editorial Board, which oversees the technical quality of the issue and its production.
• AS-U-RAIN (Applied Science University Research And Innovation Newsletter) is the university Newsletter which reports on our excellence in research and innovation and their impact on the economy and wealth generation of the Kingdom of Bahrain. This publication aims to play a great role in increasing public awareness of our achievements both at national and international levels.
• Research Leadership and Creating Capacity in Research. This publication reports on the unique workshop on “Research Leadership and Creating Capacity of Research” which was under the patronage of His Excellency Professor Riyadh Hamzah (Secretary General of the Higher Education Council in Bahrain) and was delivered under the auspices of the Arab European Leadership Network in Higher Education (ARELEN) and in association with Cardiff Metropolitan University (UK) and the Association of Arab Universities (Jordan).