As a result of the implementation of the Millennium Challenge Corporation II Compact, the Millennium Foundation, in cooperation with San Diego State University, contributed to the introduction of American undergraduate programs in Georgia. The engineering and science programs at three partner universities of Georgia (Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, Ilia State University, Georgia Technical University) obtained the accreditation of the American Board of Engineering and Technology (ABET) and the American Chemical Society (ACS) certification.
"One of the goals of the U.S Government funded Millennium Challenge Compact was the international accreditation of the programs at the partner universities in Georgia. For this purpose, within the Compact, we improved the material and technical base of higher educational institutions, equipped them with the state-of-art laboratories, and trained more than 100 professors of engineering and natural science programs at San Diego State University campus in the USA," said Magda Magradze, CEO of Millennium Foundation.
With the support of the Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia and the Millennium Foundation, four undergraduate STEM programs at the partner universities - Tbilisi State University, Georgian Technical University and Ilia State University - received international accreditation from the American Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).
In 2020, for the first time in the region, two programs at Tbilisi State University - "Electrical and Electronic Engineering" and "Computer Sciences" received the accreditation of the American Engineering and Technology Accreditation Council. In 2023, the English-language undergraduate program - "Biomedical Engineering" at Georgian Technical University and the English-language program "Computer Engineering" at Ilia State University received full ABET accreditation.
Additionally, in 2023, the English-language undergraduate chemistry program at Tbilisi State University was granted recognition by the American Chemical Society (ACS) for a period of 6 years.
The partner universities plan to obtain international accreditation for seven undergraduate programs launched in collaboration with San Diego State University as part of the Millennium Challenge Corporation Compact.
On the basis of ABET and ACS accreditation, the graduates of relevant programs of Georgian state universities will be awarded an internationally recognized diploma, which is as competitive as international diplomas issued by leading universities in America, Europe or Asia.
ABET accreditation worldwide is granted to 4,674 educational programs of 920 institutions of higher education in 42 countries, giving more than 200,000 students the opportunity to study in internationally recognized programs every year. ABET accredited programs are implemented at such universities as California Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University.
The American Chemical Society (ACS) is one of the world's leading and highly reputable professional associations in the field of chemistry. ACS has a 147-year history, unites more than 173,000 scientists from 140 countries, and its recognized chemistry education programs are considered the best in the world.
In addition to the United States of America, along with Tbilisi State University, only 4 universities outside the USA - universities in Scotland, Columbia, Wales and Thailand - have been granted ACS certification.
