The design of the Academic Colleges at Princess Nora Bint Abdulrahman University uses innovation as a means of giving back to and transforming society. This translates into a vision of community, sustainability and innovative learning environments in one of the most socio-economic and politically complex regions in the world.

The Academic Colleges are comprised of nine buildings at the heart of the newly created 8,000,000 SM (86,000,000 SF) University campus. Designed for a student population of 40,000, Princess Nora University is the largest university for women in the world. The University educates women in all major academic disciplines and includes Academic Colleges, Health-Sciences Colleges, a 450-bed teaching hospital, on-campus housing, K-12 school, central Mosque and library and sports facilities.

Saudi Arabia’s culture, architectural tradition and regional climate present a rich context for the new University. The Academic Colleges respond to these criteria and also promote advances in learning environments and building technology. The design process included an in-depth analysis of site, program and regional culture in order to achieve a deep understanding of the project context. This understanding of context as ‘place’ informed an architecture that responds to the region’s architectural heritage, materials and proportions; and creates innovative learning environments for a changing society.

The entire University is registered with the USGBC’s LEED® green building rating system with the certification goal of Gold.