Oman

Oman's first university, Sultan Qaboos University, was founded in 1985 and opened in 1986. Its academic year begins in September and ends in May. The university is made up of five colleges: Education and Islamic Sciences, Science, Medicine, Agriculture, and Engineering. In 1998 there were more than 6,000 students attending the university. In addition to Sultan Qaboos University, the Europa World Yearbook 2000 identified eight teacher-training colleges, eight Islamic colleges, and nine vocational institutes—including institutes for health sciences, banking, and technical institutes. There have also been great gains in the area of adult literacy, and education centers have been established.