Patrick Awuah is the Founder and President of Ashesi University, a private, not-for-profit institution that has quickly gained a reputation for innovation and quality education in Ghana. In 2012, Ashesi University was ranked as one of the top ten Most Respected Companies in Ghana and was the first educational institution to win the award. In the same survey, Patrick Awuah was named the 4th Most Respected CEO in Ghana.
Before founding Ashesi University, Patrick worked as a Program Manager for Microsoft where, among other things, he spearheaded the development of dial-up internet working technologies and gained a reputation for bringing difficult projects to completion.
He holds bachelor’s degrees in Engineering and Economics from Swarthmore College; an MBA from UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business; and four honorary doctorates.
He has won many prestigious international awards including the MacArthur Fellowship; the McNulty Prize; Membership of the Order of the Volta -- one of Ghana’s highest awards, given to individuals who exemplify the ideal of service to the country; Chevalier dan's l'Ordre des palmes academiques du Niger; and the World Innovation Summit for Education Prize. In 2015, Patrick was named one of the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders by Fortune, and received the Elise and Walter A. Haas International Award, given to UC Berkeley alumni with distinguished records of service to their countries.
Honorary Doctorates
- Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters, Connecticut College, 2021
- Honorary Doctor of Engineering, University of Waterloo, 2018
- Honorary Doctor of Laws, Babson College, 2013
- Honorary Doctor of Laws, Swarthmore College, 2004
Major Awards
- Chevalier Dan's l'Ordre des Palmes Academiques du Niger, 2022
- WISE Prize Laureate, 2017
- MacArthur Fellowship, 2015
- 2015 Elise and Walter A. Haas International Award, University of California, Berkeley, 2015
- Social Entrepreneur of the Year, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, 2014
- John P. McNulty Prize, 2009
- Membership of the Order of the Volta by President of Ghana, His Excellency J.A. Kufuor, 2007
Summary of Other Affiliations and Awards
- Fellow of the African Leadership Initiative—Aspen Global Leadership Network
- Member, US Council of Foreign Relations
- Member: Tau Beta Pi Honour Society for Excellence in Engineering.
- Member, TED Fellows Program: 2007 TED/Global, 2009 TED Fellow
- Ghana Web, 2005 Person of the Year
- Young Global Leader, 2007, World Economic Forum
- Winner, 2009 Microsoft Alumni Foundation "Integral Fellow" award
- Winner, John P. McNulty Prize 2009, Aspen Institute
- Ghana’s 8th Most Respected CEO, 2010 (PricewaterhouseCoopers)
- Winner, Educational Development, Millennium Excellence Awards 2010, Ghana
- Member, Advisory Committee on Voluntary Foreign Aid (ACVFA) of the U.S. Agency for International Development, March 2010 - March 2016
- Ghana's 4th Most Respected CEO, 2012 (PricewaterhouseCoopers)
- Leading Through Innovation Award, University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of Business, 2012
- Paul Harris Fellow, The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International, 2013
- Elon Medal for Entrepreneurial Leadership, Elon University, 2014
- 50 Greatest Leaders in 2015, Fortune Magazine, 2015