Based in the city of Erbil in Iraq, Hawler Medical University is a public university set up by the Council of Ministers of the Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government. It operates under the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Affairs of the Kurdistan Regional Government in Erbil.
The university was established in 2005 to include the medical group colleges that belonged to the University of Salahaddin-Erbil. These were colleges of medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and nursing. However, its oldest constituent part, the college of medicine, was founded in 1977. Since then, it has expanded to include the college of health sciences, the medical research centre and the centre for research and education in women’s health.
Being the first medical group of a university in Iraq, the overall aim of the development of Hawker Medical University was to improve medical education in Kurdistan as well as to have better and more effective management of the colleges.
Lessons are taught in English and the university has many collaborations with international universities and has established scholarships for international students.
The university emblem includes a series of straight lines that symbolise the citadel of Erbil, while a nail symbolises writing by ancient human beings, referencing the ancient history of the place. It also includes a snake as a symbol of wisdom, healing and medicine and an eagle as a symbol of the determination of the Kurdistan nation. The lines around the citadel are symbols of precision and of communication with history.
The university has a career development centre, which organises regular activities and job fairs.
