In pursuit of Sustainable Development Goal 4: Quality Education and Goal 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, and in cooperation with the Department of Studies and Planning/Sustainable Development Unit (at the Presidency of the University of Mosul), a PhD dissertation by student Karrar Nouri Hamid was defended at the College of Political Science, Al-Nahrain University. Entitled “Expectation Management Dynamics in a VUCA World: The United States of America as a Case Study,” the dissertation defense was held on Tuesday, 6 October 2026.

The defense committee was chaired by Professor Dr. Suhad Ismail Khalil and included a number of faculty members, among them Professor Dr. Hazim Hamad Musa, Head of the International Relations Department at the University of Mosul College of Political Science.

The dissertation examined the concept of expectation management in a global environment characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA), highlighting the major challenges this environment poses to decision-making and foreign policy, while adopting the United States of America as a case study to examine mechanisms of expectation management and responses to rapidly evolving international developments.

Following the defense, the committee’s decision to accept the dissertation and award the student a PhD degree was announced.