The American University in Cairo (AUC) is a liberal arts university established in 1919 to provide a centre of scholarship and learning about Egypt and its surrounding areas, and has subsequently become perhaps the most important English-language university in the Middle East and North Africa. Prominent alumni include a number of African leaders and businesspeople. The university has recently moved to a brand new campus in New Cairo, which represents a substantial and continuing investment in Egypt and the region.

The Mo Ibrahim Foundation offers two graduate fellowships and two undergraduate scholarships at AUC to students of Nubian origin looking to preserve Nubian heritage and culture.