More of our Academic Services can be found at The American Open University, which is a fully owned and operated by 1Message.
Our institution now hosts The American Open University (AOU), which was established in 1995 and was the first fully-accredited University in North America to offer Islamic Studies through a distant learning system.
What We Offer
We offer World-class education in Islamic Studies-Islamic Banking-Islamic Finance-Islamic Commercial Law-Arabic Language-Education & more. We are driven to graduate students to be experts in their fields.
Our Degree Programs are both academically rigorous and challenging which require the same investment of time and work as a traditional in-class University.
Faculty
Our faculty members are composed of highly learned men and women from across the United States and throughout the world. Our faculty members are passionate and curious individuals who continue their own research and continue advancing in their area of expertise while teaching at our institution. Each faculty member brings with them a wealth of knowledge to enrich their students at the highest level and through intense course work.
Students
Our student body is made up from all 7 continents and from all diverse backgrounds and are mentored from top instructors in all programs.
Alumni
Our graduates have become Professors, Teachers, Bankers, Imams and Advisers. Some of our graduates have published written works and articles.
Library Collection
Our Library collection consists of Islamic reference books, specializing in, Education, Economics & Finance, Aqeedah (Islamic Decree), Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence), Tafseer (The Interpretation of the meaning of the Holy Qur’an), Hadeeth (Traditions of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him), Seerah (biography of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him) and Arabic language.
Thesis Collection from our graduates
AOU’s Thesis collection consists of impressive research subjects & topics-we encourage students to choose areas & approaches that have not been deeply explored before. Our students dig deeply preforming intensely thorough research to gain the acquired knowledge necessary to impeccably produce high quality & accurate Dissertations.
Online Distant Learning and the Traditional Learning Environment
We offer Islamic Studies Programs in both the Arabic and English languages through distant learning techniques. Since we offer education online, students can study from anywhere in the world, from a mile away to across the globe. This enables everyone the ability to study without having to go to an actual campus. The convenience of distant learning is endless as we bring the classroom to you wherever you are 24 hours a day.
We also offer the traditional on-site campus classroom at our Branches. Therefore, if you live near one of our branches and prefer in-classroom instruction and learning you may choose that option for your education.
Degrees offered
We offer degrees in Bachelors in Islamic Studies, Masters in Islamic Banking, Islamic Finance, Commercial Law and Islamic Studies. PhDs in Islamic Studies, Arabic language, Education and Economics & Finance. We also offer a Certificate in the Memorization and the 10 authentic methods of recitation of Al-Qur’an.
Academically Challenging Requirements
We not only offer programs equal to any top University World-wide but we have built upon and enhanced our Bachelors Program to include in-class Comprehensive exams as a requirement for Graduating with a Bachelors Degree.
These supervised Comprehensive exams consists of 5 exams in the Domains of Aqeedah, Qur’anic Sciences, Arabic Language, Fiqh and Hadeeth. Each exam takes a minimum of 5 hours to complete and students are only to bring with them their ID, pen and paper. These are graded as pass or fail.
Our Commitment
We are committed in offering our students more specialized fields of studies in order to build a wider range of Career choices in conjunction with their Islamic Studies Degree/s. We are highly invested in our students education and due to our high standards, our Professor’s knowledge & expertise in their fields and through rigorous course studies, AOU is determined in grooming & graduating our students to be the top in their field.