Following a feasibility study and a subsequent standing collaboration with the United Kingdom Open University, the AOU was established under the umbrella of the AGFUND. It has, since then, been adopted, in principle, as an Arab private institution of higher education with a special status.

The American University of the Middle East is emerging - after five years of extensive research and studies - to be an icon of quality higher education and development in Kuwait, the region, and the world. AUM is aiming to raise the service standards and to contribute to the establishment and continuous nourishment of strategically-needed industries through developing well-rounded professionals and entrepreneurs in the areas of Business, Health, Human Services, Education, and IT.

AUK is an independent, private, equal-opportunity, and coeducational liberal arts institution of higher education. The educational, cultural, and administrative methods and standards of AUK are based on the American model of higher learning.