A viable university must possess adequate infrastructure of its own and the right environment. Manarat International University (MIU) is one of the few private universities of Bangladesh, which had built its own premises at the time of receiving the Charter from the Government. Manarat Trust is the founder of MIU. A cherished dream to establish a university had been in the bosom of every Manarat Trust member. MIU was born with a vision to inculcate ethical and moral dimension while offering a comprehensive professional training. Through overwhelming support and inspired dedication, the university project was underway. Ahmed Farid, the former Vice-chancellor, was offered the monumental task to lead the MIU Project Team as the Project Director. He assumed his role in 1996 and since then, even during the periods of ebbing hope and frustration, he stuck to his vision and inspired the project team to endeavor for the much desired Charter of Approval. Ministry of Education of the Government of Bangladesh granted Manarat the permission to establish a university under Private University Act, 1992, as amended in 1998. On the 3rd April 2001 the birth of MIU was confirmed with the Charter awarded to it by the Ministry of Education on the recommendation of the University Grants Commission. MIU was inaugurated on the 21st of May 2001 amidst a modest ceremony arranged for the first batch of incoming students and their guardians. Manarat is now poised to contribute to the human resource development by expanding the scope of higher education in Bangladesh. MIU’s International Advisory Board consisting of distinguished academicians, scholars, researchers and entrepreneurs from noteworthy international universities and organizations provides advice and counsel on academic programs and standards. MIU has signed official collaboration agreement with California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB) and is in progress to develop similar arrangements with other globally reputed universities. The spirit of MIU is to foster a congenial atmosphere for intellectual growth, moral uplift and professional excellence. MIU epitomizes quintessential amalgamation of scholastic development, enriched co-curricular environment and commitment to principles and values. The courses and all aspects of the academic program are modeled on North American universities reflecting a rich blend of sub-continental issues. MIU’s first freshmen classes began on May 28, 2001 with 73 students in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, School of Computer Science and Information Technology, and in the Department of Business Administration of the School of Business and Economics.

Manarat Trust has been in the service of the society in Bangladesh since 1981. For nearly two decades it has attained credibility and goodwill in the civil society by dint of its contribution to the different avenues of social service. Manarat Trust was formed by some Islam loving intellectuals and social thinkers of national and international reputation with a sacred mission of working towards Islamization of knowledge and creating a value based educational center of excellence in Bangladesh. The first noble venture of the Trust began with the establishment of an English medium Kinder Garten School named Manarat Dhaka in 1979. In 1985 the School was renamed as Manarat International School. With gradual advancement of the students to higher classes and with the launching of an English medium HSC level program, the name of the school was changed to Manarat International College in 1991. At this stage the Trust felt that the cherished goal for the Islamization of knowledge should not be confined to school and college levels only. Promotional efforts for the formation of a University, therefore, started in 1995 and the project document for setting up Manarat International University (MIU) was submitted in 1996. After protracted negotiations and communications with the concerned authority over a period of five years, MIU finally got its formal approval in 2001. According to the Private University Act-2010 “Manarat Trust” for university is now reconstituted as “MIU Board of Trustees”. As a founder MIU Board of Trustees is fully committed to providing unstinted support and upholds the spirit and purpose of MIU. It is imperative to mention the names of those illustrious individuals who rendered relentless support and encouragement in their best possible capacities. Without them, this manifest destiny of the noble institution could not have been achieved. Therefore, MIU extends its profound gratitude and warmest regards to the Board of Trust members who have been instrumental as well as cardinal to realize a dream that has been cherished by the entire Muslim Ummah. They are:

As a university, it commits itself to academic excellence and the pursuit of wisdom which stems from the spirit of free inquiry, religious values, and human experience. MIU pledges to foster quality education that will respond to ethical, cultural, social, professional, and religious needs of a dynamic society. It strives to preserve and enhance the scope of scholarly research, creativity and quest for truth as the basis of learning. MIU believes that it is only through the combination of the individuals’ inherited religious and cultural values with modern scientific and technological knowledge so that a real combination thus made can contribute to the advancement of a society.

MIU contends that in response to the resurgence of Islamic values, it has a historic role to play in the new chapter of the 21st century and that, its task is to bridge the gap between traditional ideas and values of Islam and the technological advancement of the West. Its mission is to establish a platform that will develop dynamic leadership in the society for our future progeny.
, the advancement of knowledge with cosmic blend of Islam is the rai-son d’etre of Manarat International University. The name Manarat is derived from its Arabic root word ‘Munawara’ which is a synonym of “Light at the Paramount”. Hence Manarat encompasses the spirit and strength of manifestation of its name – to achieve the highest academic excellence in providing higher education in Bangladesh. The mission of MIU is to emerge as a prestigious educational institution with emphasis on research of the Islamic world. It pledges not only to become a center of excellence but also an enviable seat of quality learning .