US University of New Haven to open first Saudi campus in Riyadh this September

The US University of New Haven is set to open its Riyadh campus in September, marking the launch of the first American university branch campus in Saudi Arabia as the kingdom pushes to expand international higher education under Vision 2030.

The university said the new campus, located in the Mohammed Bin Salman Nonprofit City -Misk City, would welcome Saudi citizens, expatriate residents and international students.

The first phase of the campus will launch with a College of Business and Digital Innovation offering undergraduate and graduate programmes focused on business, entrepreneurship and digital innovation. The university said the initial intake is expected to reach up to 500 students.

The University of New Haven had received approval from the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE), paving the way for the opening of what it described as the world’s first US international branch campus in Saudi Arabia.

University President Jens Frederiksen said Saudi Arabia represents “an extraordinary frontier in the evolution of global education”, citing the kingdom’s investment in innovation, technology and workforce development.

The Riyadh campus forms part of Saudi Arabia’s broader efforts to attract leading international educational institutions and strengthen the private higher education sector as the kingdom seeks to diversify its economy away from oil.

The university plans to expand later through additional colleges specialising in engineering, advanced manufacturing, arts and applied sciences. Once fully operational, the campus is expected to accommodate around 13,000 students