Aliya Al Ansari

(Associate Professor)

Assistant Dean (PGRS)

College of Science (CoS) began with the establishment of Sultan Qaboos University. The college is committed to achieve the mission of Sultan Qaboos University and its strategy of excellence in the fields of postgraduate studies and scientific research. The office of ADPSR acts as the focal point between the College of Science with both the Deanship of Research and the Deanship of postgraduate studies. Our mission is to develop strategies to attract research funding with parties outside SQU such as industry, government..etc to develop collaborations with researchers in CoS. Our office offers all the support needed for researchers and try to retrieve the research spirit among staff and postgraduate students by organizing activities such as workshops or meetings within the college. 

However, the College currently offers seven PhD programs in chemistry, Physics, Computer Science, Earth Science, Biology, Statistics and Mathematics. The CoS also offer MSc programs in Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Computer Science, Data Science & Machine Learning, Stats, Petroleum Geophysics, Pure Mathematics, Applied Mathematics and Environmental Sciences. These programs are regularly reviewed and many of them have received accreditation from international institutions. Our office monitor with the help of program coordinators in each department, the study and research progression of all postgraduate students and offer assistance and advices. We prepare the students to initiate research projects, analyze the results and write scientific reports. Our postgraduate students have a reputation for excellence in higher scientific education.  

The main roles concerning the postgraduate studies are:

1. Assist the Deanship of Postgraduate Studies in the development and revision of regulations related to graduate studies and insure their alignment to university policy.
2. Collaborate with the Deanship of Postgraduate Studies in the procedures for graduate education including admission, program approval, scholarships, study progression and award of a degree.
3. Revision of the current graduate programs, approval of new courses of postgraduate study and accreditation activities.
4. Monitor with the help of program coordinators in each department, the study and research progression of all postgraduate students in the College and offer assistance and advices.  Track the publications and conference visits of a postgraduate student.
5. Organize and control the procedure for a thesis Defense and monitor the evaluation process of all postgraduate students in College.
6. Assists the program coordinators in each department with decisions on thesis examinations, appeals, extension of time requests, etc.
7. Represent and support the academic staff on appropriate University committees and the Deanship of Postgraduate Studies.

The main roles concerning research are:

1. Provide leadership and oversight for the college research committee, and ensure regular communication among the department’s faculty members by Research coordinators.
2. Develop strategies to ensure that faculty publish research papers in highly ranked outlets.
3. Develop strategies to attract research funding with parties outside SQU such as industry, government etc.
4. Provide consultation to improve the quality of research proposals, approval and submission according to university policy to increase the funding opportunities.
5. Monitor and support the research progress of funded research projects.
6. Organize research activities such as seminars, workshops or meetings within the CoS or other university colleges.
7. Provide direction and oversight to ensure the timely submission of progress reports and other document required in accordance with University regulations and policies.

The College of Science currently offers seven PhD programs and ten MSc programs as the following:

• MSC Programs:

MSc in Pure Mathematics
MSc in Applied Mathematics
MSc in Petroleum Geophysics
MSc in Biology
MSc in Chemistry   
MSc in Computer Science 
MSc in Statistics
MSc in Physics  
MSc in Data Science and Machine Learning  
MSc in Environmental Science  

• PHD Programs:

PhD in Chemistry   
PhD in Physics  
PhD in Computer Science  
PhD in Earth Science
PhD in Biology  
PhD in Statistics  
PhD in Mathematics 

For More Details and Registration Visit Deanship for Postgraduate 

• Past Thesis

The MSc programs were first offered in the college in 1999.  The programs received well national reputation in the Sultanate for research excellency. The Graph below shows the number of students admitted between 2014-2021. The students prefer the MSc programs in Chemistry, Biology, Computer Science and Petroleum Geosciences. So far the MSc programs in Chemistry, Physics and Environmental Sciences received international accreditation.

The PhD programs were first offered in the college in 2008. The Graph below shows the number of students admitted between 2014-2021. The trend is strongly affected by the research funding in these department.

The College of Science received variable research funding from Internal Grants (IG), Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation (MoHERI), His Majesty Strategic Grants (HM) and Research Contracts (RC).

High quality impactful research outputs of international journal papers, book chapter and conference papers. The Graph below shows the number of publications from Departments of Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics between 2012-2021. There are significant contributions in publications due to the Covid-19 pandemic itself.