I was honored last Saturday morning, 19 Muharram 1448 AH, corresponding to July 4, 2026, to visit the American STARDOM University, Istanbul branch, upon a generous invitation from His Excellency the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, our esteemed professor and dear friend, Prof. Dr. Mohammed bin Saleh Al-Shanti. I was delighted in this fruitful visit to meet His Excellency the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Dr. Eng. Saleh Sabri, and His Excellency the CEO of the University, Eng. Mohammed Obaid, and Their Excellencies the University President, deans of colleges, and supporting deanships, and to listen to a detailed, comprehensive, and thorough explanation of this distinguished academic entity.

Colleges and Universities

From the first moments of the visit, it became clear that work at this university is not based on individual efforts, but on a professional institutional system, relying on meticulous planning, high quality, continuous development, and investment in the latest technologies and digital platforms to serve the educational process and provide an integrated academic environment that achieves the highest standards of efficiency and effectiveness.

What particularly caught my attention is that this technological approach did not come at the expense of the quality of education or the strength of outcomes, but rather supported them. The university realizes that technology is a means, not an end, and that real value lies in building knowledge, developing skills, and preparing the student scientifically and professionally in a solid manner. I was also pleased to see accurate systems for monitoring and follow-up, both during lectures and exams, ensuring discipline, enhancing academic integrity, and preserving the value of the academic degree. Continuous monitoring of student attendance, interaction, and academic performance, along with the use of the latest verification and electronic control methods, confirms that distance education can achieve the highest levels of quality when managed professionally and responsibly.

Moreover, those in charge of the university have made education a noble message and a high value, so they have made efforts to bring their academic halls to those unable to continue their university studies due to global wars and conflicts, or perhaps due to special circumstances that prevented them from accessing university and postgraduate education.

Among the commendable aspects is the great attention to the Arabic language and the allocation of a special center to teach it to non-native speakers worldwide.

The university's acquisition of several strong accreditations (American and European) and the presence of offices in the United States, Britain, Turkey, and Egypt have strengthened its position among similar globally oriented universities. In addition, the reach of its peer-reviewed scientific journals to the global academic community has made researchers compete to publish in them due to their distinction, fast publication, and reasonable prices compared to other universities, whether governmental or private.

This university has surpassed the stereotype that some try to attach to e-learning (distance education), and has proven that modern education is capable of combining flexibility and discipline, and ease of access to knowledge while maintaining strict academic standards. The real criterion is not the student's location, but the quality of the educational system, the efficiency of the faculty member, and the rigor of evaluation and monitoring procedures.

During this visit, which lasted more than three hours, I sensed a positive spirit among the team, a passion for development, and a belief that the real investment is in the human being, regardless of age, gender, place of residence, and surrounding circumstances that constrain them. For them, building minds is the foundation of building nations. It is a message worthy of appreciation and gives optimism for the future of university education in light of accelerating digital transformations.

It is high time we move beyond the negative mental image attached to distance education due to limited experiences that do not represent the whole reality. E-learning, when managed by minds believing in development, accurate systems, and effective control, can match traditional education, and even surpass it in many aspects, in terms of flexibility, ease of access to knowledge, and utilization of modern technological capabilities.

What I saw today confirms that the future will not be a conflict between face-to-face education and distance education, but rather it will favor institutions that have a clear vision and invest in technology without compromising the quality of education or lowering its academic standards.

Perhaps the most beautiful thing I sensed during this visit is that technological development did not overwhelm the human aspect, but was harnessed to serve the student, support the faculty member, and raise institutional performance efficiency. This is the equation that leading universities in the world are seeking.

Thank you, Your Excellency our esteemed professor, Prof. Mohammed Al-Shanti, for the generous invitation. Thank you to the university family for the warm reception and wonderful scientific hospitality, and for what I sensed of sincere keenness to advance university education and present an academic model that combines authenticity and modernity, affirming that quality is not related to the mode of education, but to conscious management, solid systems, and ambitious vision.

Truly, it was a visit rich in observations and lessons. I left it more convinced that the future of education will be for those who best employ technology, while preserving the dignity of science, quality of knowledge, integrity of assessment, development of skills, and possession of mechanisms and methodologies of sound scientific research, especially for graduate students. Stay well, until we meet again, and peace.

Education

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