The University of Wolverhampton is to launch a new regional office in Oman to build partnerships in the region and provide information and advice for potential students.

The Middle East Regional Office (MERO) will be based in Muscat and will open its doors on Monday 25 March 2013.

It aims to build long partnerships with Middle East governments and private sector companies, delivering consultancies for new projects and offering short courses for Continuous Professional Development as well as Knowledge Transfer Partnerships.

It will also provide advice and information on student admission information for more than 300 courses, visa procedure and the accommodation enquiries and personal assistance to prospective students who want to study at the University of Wolverhampton.

The MERO office operations also covers the Gulf countries of United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq and Kurdistan and the surrounding Arab states.

Vice Chancellor of the University of Wolverhampton, Professor Geoff Layer, said: “We are delighted to be opening a new regional office in Oman.

“The Middle East is an important market for us in terms of international students so to have a presence there is very important.

“We already have a growing cohort of students from the region who study at the University and we would like to showcase what we have to offer in order to encourage further potential student enquiries and applications.

“We are very much the University of the Black Country in the UK and have a rich tradition and heritage but we must also look and operate globally.”

Hilal Almasheri, who is Head of the new office, said: “I am very much looking forward to welcoming prospective students through our doors.

“We look forward to a long and mutually beneficial relationship with the many educational institutions and the Higher Education Authority within Oman and the wider Middle Eastern community.”

An official opening ceremony will be stage at the British Ambassador’s Residence in Oman.

The University already has a community of more than 2,500 international students from over 100 countries living and studying in Wolverhampton, Walsall and Telford.

The University welcomes students from around the world and already has regional offices in China, Malaysia, India, Nigeria, Poland and Cyprus. It has a branch campus in Mauritius, an associate campus in Biarritz and courses are also delivered with global partners in China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, India, Sri Lanka, Russia, France and Cyprus.