Mississippi State University is extending its partnership with a Moroccan university as the two work to expand opportunities for their students and faculty members.
Moroccan Ambassador to the United States Youssef Amrani and Université Internationale de Rabat President Noureddine Mouaddib visited Mississippi on Thursday to meet with MSU President Dr. Mark Keenum. During their visit, which included stops in Starkville and Jackson, multiple education agreements were signed.
The agreements renew and expand the framework for MSU and UIR to develop mutually beneficial academic programs. Previously focused on engineering with some other programs included, the partnership now includes agriculture, business, veterinary medicine, and other fields. It also allows for expanded student and faculty exchanges and joint research initiatives and will remain in effect until 2031.
In addition, Keenum and Mouaddib signed three execution agreements establishing new dual-degree pathways for students.
The first agreement is between MSU’s Bagley College of Engineering and UIR to cosponsor doctoral degrees in science, engineering, and technology.
The second agreement is between MSU’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and UIR and will offer a master’s degree in plant and soil sciences to students who complete an agriculture-related bachelor’s degree at UIR.
The third agreement creates a combined undergraduate pathway in tourism and hospitality, allowing students to earn a four-year bachelor’s degree in tourism and destination development at MSU through the College of Integrative Studies and a three-year bachelor’s degree in international tourism and hospitality at UIR, graduating with degrees from both universities.
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“I think that this visit, this agreement, and this contact between two important universities, one in Morocco and one in Mississippi, will surely foster a new dynamic in our bilateral relations,” Amrani said.
“For well over a decade, we’ve had hundreds of students from this university come to Mississippi State to pursue their graduate studies in engineering. We also are excited about opportunities that we have been able to offer our students to study abroad at UIR,” Keenum added. “It’s a wonderful partnership, and today, we’re expanding beyond engineering to include agriculture, architecture, business, and other meaningful programs for their students to come here to study and for our students to have the opportunity to continue studies there.”
Amrani said the agreement with Mississippi State is bigger than academia, reflecting a strong allyship between Morocco and the U.S. Morocco was the first nation 250 years ago to recognize the U.S. after it declared its independence.
“We can bring people together and build up a common future in this very complex world,” he said, noting both countries’ focus on education and science.
Keenum explained that one of the reasons he wanted to strengthen the partnership is because, in his opinion, Mississippi and Morocco share not only a commitment to education but a similar “outstanding hospitality and beauty.”