Thursday, 26th September 2024

Islamabad — Riphah International University held the Coursera@Riphah Project Achievement & Closing Ceremony at its Al-Mizan Campus, celebrating the successful completion of a transformative three-year partnership with Coursera and the university’s recognition as the winner of the Coursera 2024 Maximizing Impact Award for the Asia Pacific region.

The event marked not only the culmination of the Coursera@Riphah Project (2021–2024) but also the beginning of a new era in digital education excellence at Riphah.

A Visionary Initiative in Digital Transformation

The Coursera@Riphah Project was launched on October 1, 2021, as part of Riphah’s strategic commitment to advancing digital learning, upskilling faculty, and enhancing student engagement through world-class online education. The initiative was led by Mr. Muhammad Saud Khan, Director Coursera Project, under the guidance of Dr. Yawar Hayat Khan, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academics).

Since its inception, the project aimed to:

• Integrate Coursera content with physical classroom teaching,
• Build faculty capacity in instructional design and course authoring, and
• Foster a sustainable digital learning ecosystem across all Riphah campuses.

Over the past three years, Coursera@Riphah evolved into one of the most comprehensive digital transformation initiatives in Pakistan’s higher education sector — enabling data-driven decision-making, innovative teaching methods, and a deep culture of continuous learning.

Record-Breaking Achievements

The Coursera@Riphah Project achieved exceptional milestones that earned it global recognition:

• 9,768 unique learners engaged across campuses in Islamabad, Lahore, and Malakand.
• Over 127,000 total enrollments and 74,819 course completions.
• 1,700+ classroom integrations incorporating Coursera content.
• An outstanding 95% license utilization rate.
• 106 faculty-authored Coursera courses, making Riphah the university with the highest number of privately authored courses on Coursera in 2024.

Through these accomplishments, Riphah became the first Pakistani university to adopt a large-scale blended learning model integrating global MOOCs with local classroom experiences — positioning itself as a leader in academic innovation across the Asia Pacific region.

Closing Ceremony Highlights

The Closing Ceremony, held on September 26, 2024, celebrated the culmination of this ambitious project and its far-reaching impact.

Appreciation awards were presented to Riphah’s leadership, project teams, faculty members, and course authors for their exceptional contributions. The event honored the Coursera Project Directorate, which included:

• Dr. Yawar Hayat Khan, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academics)
• Mr. Muhammad Saud Khan, Director Coursera@Riphah Project
• Ms. Esha Iqbal, Coursera Focal Person
• Mr. Syed Abul Aala, Coursera Administrator

Their leadership, supported by dedicated academic and technical committees, ensured the success of every phase — from system integration to content creation and faculty training.

Leadership Reflections and Global Recognition

Speaking about the project’s impact, Mr. Muhammad Saud Khan highlighted Riphah’s vision of “building digital capacity with purpose.” He emphasized that digital transformation is not only about technology, but about empowering people — faculty and students — to collaborate, innovate, and grow.

His perspective was also featured in Coursera’s global blog series “7 Questions with a Bold Innovator,” where he discussed how Riphah’s digital journey became a model for scalable, people-centered academic transformation in the region.

Looking Ahead

Winning the Coursera 2024 Maximizing Impact Award for Asia Pacific represents more than a milestone; it symbolizes Riphah’s continued leadership in integrating ethics, technology, and academic excellence in higher education.

The university remains committed to expanding digital learning opportunities, enhancing course authoring capabilities, and creating globally competitive graduates ready to meet the challenges of the digital future.