Saadiyat Island
Under the presidency of Richard Levin, Yale University began developing a "internationalization" strategy that included expanding financial resources for international students and study abroad programs, founding the Yale World Fellows and the Center for the Study of Globalization, and joining the International Alliance of Research Universities. Administrators at Yale began considering international campus expansion in 2006, and initially approached the United Arab Emirates about establishing an arts institute on Abu Dhabi's Saadiyat Island, developed in collaboration with the university's arts professional schools. After Yale indicated that it was not willing to offer Yale degree programs at the proposed institute, the project was dropped.