University offers five new and diversified and affordable online courses to students around the world

Ashbery University is now offering an additional five new online degree programs that adds to an already extensive portfolio for students around the world. The University has over 1000 programs with 70 majors that have drawn more than 45,000 students globally in the last two years only.The launch of five new programs is part of the University’s initiative to enable students to pursue their education in the fields of their choice. These new programs include Master’s in Social Sciences,Master in Photonics, Doctorate in Applied Arts, Master’s in Performing Arts, Doctorate in Performing Arts and Doctorate in Occupational Safety and Health.

Ashbery University has been a pioneer in online education for decades, and we feel honored to expand our study programs in an attempt to benefit our students around the world," said Ashbery University Director, Michael A. Phillips.According to the Director, the University launched these programs based on students’ pressing requests, which it had been receiving for the past several years. He added that the University also inducted competent and well experienced faculty to develop relevant and up-to-date courses in keeping with the latest developments. Nearly 1,000 students have so far enrolled on these five programs.Dr. Phillips further added that due to the constant evolution of the global academic trends and a rising demand for the same, the University felt the need to introduce these online programs. Last year a large number of potential students had inquired about these majors directly from the University as well. These inquiries came in from over 50 countries such as United States, United Kingdom, Australia, U.A.E, Saudi Arabia etc. who expressed interest in one or more of the recently offered programs.

Like other programs the University offers, the new programs are designed keeping in mind the specific needs of today’s students. Designed by experts of various fields of study, the programs are highly relevant, interactive and up-to-date. Students learn through updated video clips, interactive lessons and quizzes and can also provide instant feedback through the student forum, which has also been updated for better interactivity. At the same time, students can also help each other through online discussion forum, comment on ongoing threads and ask what’s on their mind.The administration at Ashbery University predicts that the enrollments in these newly introduced programs will increase further by year end. Dr. Philips, the Director, welcomes students’ feedback on the program, which will help improve the quality of course content and delivery modes.

Study abroad in different countries

 Muslims living overseas practise cultural and religious traditions during the holy month of Ramadan more devotedly than their counterparts at home, a newly released study said.Specifically, Muslims living and working overseas said that their actions during Ramadan changed after arriving in their host countries, with half of respondents (50 per cent) saying they fasted more and two in five (41 per cent) practised sharing and giving more.The Western Union-sponsored study ‘Traditions of Ramadan by Global Citizens of Muslim Faith’, was conducted in July by the Nielsen Company and covered Muslims of 11 nationalities living in 12 countries in the Asia Pacific, the Middle East, the United States and Western Europe.

The study found that despite being away from family and loved ones, 96 per cent practised fasting, 89 per cent prayed, 78 per cent engaged in iftar or evening meals to break the day’s fast and 75 per cent read the Quran during Ramadan.The study covered around 550 Muslims emigrants originally from the Middle East and North African countries of Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco and Tunisia and the Asian countries of Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.A majority of Muslims (94 per cent) shared their wealth during the month of Ramadan, by giving away money, known as zakat while five per cent of them shared by giving away food and clothing.Two out of five surveyed said love of family and friends, along with dedication to work, were the key factors motivating them to fast, pray and share their wealth.

The respondents were residing in Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in the Middle East; Malaysia and Singapore in Asia; the United Kingdom, Germany and Austria,France in Europe; and the United States.The study said zakat obligation was most commonly fulfilled through sharing with people who are known to the giver locally or overseas (65 per cent). Arab Muslims are more likely to share with people they know locally (42 per cent) than overseas (29 per cent), while the reverse was true for non-Arabs