Sharjah, United Arab Emirates The location of the university enhances its mission. Sharjah is a global trade center and a city of learning and the arts, as confirmed by its 1998 UNESCO designation as the Cultural Capital of the Arab World.

American University of Sharjah is situated in University City, which is located 16 kilometers (10 miles) from the center of Sharjah (emirate) Sharjah and about 25 km from the neighboring emirate of Dubai. AUS is the flagship institution of University City, a 1,600 acre complex that includes other educational establishments. The university offers students full-facility dormitories, a sports complex, and a gym. Other amenities include a health center, a pharmacy, a bank, a post office, a barbershop, a ladies beauty salon, and two convenience stores. The distinctive architecture of the domes and arches of the academic and administrative buildings is accentuated with graceful Arab motifs. The center of the AUS campus comprises 12 academic buildings. The academic buildings house classrooms and lecture halls of various sizes; a state-of-the-art library; science, language, computer and engineering laboratories; workshops and digital studios; and offices for faculty, academic administrators, and support staff. The campus includes student residential halls (for men and for women) as well as a large Sports Complex and a Student Center. Approximately 40 percent of the student body lives in campus housing. Unlike most American universities, AUS requires faculty members and their families to live on campus with the intention of providing students with a learning and living environment that allows for on-going interaction with faculty members and their families.

The university residential halls offer a multicultural environment in which students from different parts of the world can learn from one another. All residential hall offer students many resources, including Internet access, study rooms, computer labs, dining areas, recreational areas, television rooms, laundry facilities, and fitness centers.