Overview
Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) is Oman’s premier institution of higher education, founded in 1986 and named after the late Sultan Qaboos bin Said, whose reign oversaw the transformation of Oman from an underdeveloped economy to a modern state. SQU is the flagship of Oman’s public university system and the country’s most important research institution.
Located on a purpose-built campus in the Al Khoud area of Muscat, SQU has grown to accommodate approximately 19,000 students across nine colleges: Medicine and Health Sciences, Engineering, Science, Agriculture and Marine Sciences, Arts and Social Sciences, Law, Commerce and Economics, Education, and Nursing.
Rankings and Academic Performance
QS World Rankings 2026: SQU achieved its best-ever ranking of 334th globally — a significant milestone that places it among the world’s top research universities and validates Oman’s investment in its flagship institution. This ranking improvement directly supports Vision 2040’s target of having 3 Omani universities in the QS top 500 by 2030 — already exceeded, with 5 universities achieving this milestone.
Research output: SQU has substantially increased its research publication output and citation impact over the past decade, reflecting investment in research infrastructure, international academic partnerships, and incentive structures for faculty research.
Regional ranking: SQU consistently ranks among the top 5 universities in the Gulf Cooperation Council — a competitive position in a region where UAE and Saudi Arabia universities (with significantly larger budgets) dominate rankings.
Colleges and Faculties
College of Medicine and Health Sciences: Oman’s primary medical school, producing the physicians and healthcare professionals central to Vision 2040’s health priority. Clinical training partnerships with Royal Hospital and Sultan Qaboos University Hospital.
College of Engineering: Graduate engineers for Oman’s industrial development — including programmes in petroleum engineering, chemical engineering, civil, mechanical, and electrical engineering.
College of Economics and Business Administration: Produces business, economics, and finance graduates for Oman’s private sector and government.
College of Agriculture and Marine Sciences: Addresses fisheries and food security — sectors in which Oman has genuine resource endowments.
Research and Innovation
SQU’s research priorities align with Vision 2040’s economic diversification objectives:
- Energy and renewable energy research
- Marine biology and fisheries science
- Materials science for industrial applications
- Health and biomedical research (including the Omani Genome Programme connection)
- Water resources and desalination
The Omani Genome Programme, announced in 2024/2025, has SQU as a key research partner — positioning the university at the frontier of precision medicine and population genetics research.
Omanisation and Graduate Employability
SQU’s graduates are a primary pipeline into both public sector and private sector employment. Improving the relevance of SQU degree programmes to private sector employer needs — reducing the skills mismatch identified in the labour market priority — is an ongoing institutional challenge.