Campus Life tech transfers

Nasser Rabbat

Immigrant members of the MIT community

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Nasser Rabbat, the Aga Khan Professor in the Department of Architecture.
Photo courtesy of Daniel Jackson.

I have spent more than half of my life at MIT. Having studied architecture in my native Damascus, Syria, I came to the U.S. to specialize in passive solar energy at the University of California, Los Angeles. My love of history eventually brought me to MIT to pursue my PhD in the History and Theory of Architecture in 1984. I have not left since. I met my partner of 27 years, Randa, in Cairo while researching my dissertation. We have one son, Kinan, and one cat, O’Katie.

I teach Islamic Architecture, and I am committed to two pedagogical philosophies: the humanistic basis of modern education and the power of art and culture in bringing people together.

Nasser Rabbat is the Aga Khan Professor in the Department of Architecture, and the Director of the Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture.

Editor's note: Tech Transfers is a photo series by Professor Daniel Jackson that features immigrant members of MIT.