Waqar Ahmad
Chairman of the Supervisory Board, President of Nazarbayev University
Professor Waqar Ahmad is a seasoned academic leader, most recently serving as сhancellor (president) at Abu Dhabi University. Previously, he was deputy vice chancellor at Abu Dhabi University, professor of Primary Care Research at University of Leeds, and associate professor at the University of York and the University of Bradford.
He currently holds visiting professorships at the London School of Economics and the University of York, and has previously held a visiting professorship at University College London. A Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences, he enjoys an international reputation for his research about health and social care within the fields of sociology, social policy and social epidemiology. His research has appeared in major international journals and books by leading publishers. Under his leadership,
Abu Dhabi University rose to the ranking of 250-300 in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2023, was ranked in the top 60 among Times Higher Asian University Rankings and the Times Higher Young University Rankings, and among the top 200 in the Times Higher Global Employability Rankings. Reflecting his keen commitment to research contributing to policy and practice, from 2001 to 2004, Professor Ahmad served as the Chief Social Scientist at the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, United Kingdom. He also served on the Strategic Board of the UK’s Economic and Social Research Council and the research and knowledge exchange strategic committee of the Higher Education Funding Council, England.
