DUBAI - Charting its educational future, Dubai is carving an academic niche as the ‘Boston of the Middle East’.
The emirate’s goal is simple: reverse the decades-long “brain drain” of UAE students to universities abroad by establishing a hub of world-class institutions that attract nationals and expatriates alike.
The catalyst for this “brain gain” is infamous: 9/11 and the backlash against students from Arab and Muslim countries. Thousands of students were disheartened from studying at U.S. and other Western schools, prompting Dubai to embark on ambitious plans to create educational “free zones” that would rival the world’s best universities.
The government also wanted academic settings that offered women high-quality programmes that catered to their needs, in addition to providing affordable education to nationals and expatriates who could not go overseas.
The plan was bold and avant-garde. Offer 100 per cent foreign ownership, 100 per cent tax free, 100 per cent repatriation of assets and profits, along with what is advertised as “effortless visa issuance procedures.”
And the results so far are Dubai Knowledge Village (DKV) and Dubai International Academic City (DIAC) - a sprawling, 25 million-sq.-ft. campuses on the eastern outskirts.
While the emirate’s pioneering plans took shape with the establishment of DKV, Academic City was launched officially last year with many institutions shifting base to it, following DKV’s rebranding as an HRhub.
Seeing an opportunity to cash in on Dubai’s reputation as a global destination, the government partnered with businesses to realise its vision of becoming “the international destination for human capital management.”
But even as the emirate spearheads academic change to create its own middle eastern model, with “western” and multi-cultural touches, the government is facing several challenges. Perhaps, the biggest challenge ishowto lure high school graduates from the Middle East, North Africa and beyond to the smaller, sister campuses of reputable --as well as lesser known-- institutions?
Dr Ayoub Kazim, Executive Director of Dubai Knowledge Village and DIAC, noted that the objective of these hubs was to create a destination for these students to pursue their studies. However, he emphasised that the need of the hour is to cash in on the branding of Dubai.
“This is an advantage for us, but we need to provide awareness for those (colleges) that are conservative and not keen to internationalise their programmes,” he added.
Knowledge Village was launched first, in 2003, followed three years later by Academic City. What began as a handful of universities and 2,000 students, has grown to more than 26 international universities and nearly 10,000 trans-national, local and expatriate students. By 2015, authorities envision 40 universities and a student body of 40,000.
Branch campuses of renowned institutions such as Michigan State University( MSU) have set up satellite bases in the world’s only “free zone” dedicated to “professional training and learning support.” Other countries that have set up academic shop are Britain, Australia, India, Pakistan, Iran, Russia, Belgium and Ireland.
The hub includes professional training centres; human resource training and development centres; education support services; and management consultancies, in addition to research and development centres. Last month, DKV announced that the number of business partners had surpassed 400, a 16 per cent increase for the first half of 2008.
Despite the ambitious plans, it is interesting to note that every year, thousands of local and expatriate students pass out of Dubai’s schools, but only a fraction take up admissions to colleges in the new zones. Many parents, pupils and educators voice concerns that branch campuses pale in comparison with their faraway parent universities. They express scepticism about the quality of the teaching, the learning environment, course options and accreditation. Other stumbling blocks they cite include rising tuition costs, smaller campuses and a relative lack of facilities for housing, academics, sports and student life.
Parents ask why, permitting student unions and making the Academic City an attractive place are after-thoughts?
“The university environment and its status are very important,” said Lee Davies, principal of Sheffield Private School in Dubai. “A good deal of people who have moved to live in Dubai would consider themselves well educated and successful at what they do. As a consequence, they want the best for their children. This would mean attendance at the university which has the best reputation for discipline.”
He added that even though branches of UK universities are in Dubai, many parents prefer to send children to the main campuses.“What they look for isa wider range of facilities for study and a greater choice of extra curricula sports and societies,” he said.
Leaving home to go to university is a key stage of growing up, he noted.
“For many, becoming independent and living away from the family is just as important as the course being studied. The choice of degree course is very critical and at present the choices available in Dubai are limited,” Davis added.
Dr Brian Matthews, Superintendent of Dubai American Academy, pointed out that parents often want their children to have an “American experience,” especially after having lived abroad for extended periods.
At the same time, parents often encourage their children to attend their own, or another family member’s, alma mater. Such traditions are carried with each generation,” said Matthews, adding that parents would also like their children to “re-establish” themselves in the US and “identify” as Americans.
“Additionally, the US college experience is unique and produces successful people. And, there is an abundance of financial aid and scholarships,” he said.
Clare Murzello, a BBA final-year student at Mahe Manipal in Dubai, said one big deterrent was that the campuses were invariably small and the instruction was lacking. “The teaching is definitely not as good as in the original universities,” she said.
Reema Obeid Qureshi, a graduate of Cambridge International School, is attending McMaster University in Ontario, Canada, to study medicine. She, too, cites the quality of education as her reason for travelling so far from home.
“Universities here (in Dubai) have just opened, and even if they are branches of reputed international universities, they do not have the same level of teaching or recognition,” Qureshi said. “Even though Dubai has its share ofmedical colleges, they are not as good as the long-standing international universities.”
Educators, other students and some parents, however, dispute such characterisations.
“Why would a reputed college want to spoil its name by offering any less quality education in its branch?” asked Anand Sudarshan, Managing Director and CEO of Manipal Education. He said students were assured quality education.
Michigan State University Dubai, which opened its doors to students last month, has several takers who are confident of its teaching quality. Rebecca Lakin said she expected high teaching standards from the university because of its reputation across the world.
“Though I do not think the college experience would be the same as abroad, I believe teaching is good. I chose the university after checking the accreditation and its programmes with my brother in the US, after which I decided to enrol here,” she said.
K. Nair, whose son recently left for Georgia Institute of Technology in the US, said that credibility was not an issue; rather, Dubai authorities had not really worked towards building trust or creating value-based education.
“An education system needs years to develop and requires benchmarking like an American, British or even and Indian education system,” he said. “That value building or trust has not happened here and no one has taken the effort to bolster confidence in the UAE system. Besides, it is extremely expensive and the quality doesn’t match the costs.
” Dr Warren Fox, the Executive Director of Higher Education in Knowledge and Human Development Authority, takes issue with some of the criticisms. He said that students all over the world choose to study abroad for a variety of reasons, including family and socialties, and that “this was not a reflection of the higher education available in Dubai.” He said, “Far from a brain drain, our information indicates that more students come to study in Dubai than travel abroad. Year on year, increasing numbers of students are choosing Dubai for their college studies.”
Meanwhile, authorities are determined to tide over these concerns to create an environment to foster and encourage student unions, which are missing in UAE colleges.
Emirati officials are acutely aware of the criticisms and the challenges in persuading parents and students to consider a branch university closer to home. Plans are afoot to try to create a vibrant campus environment by building housing, recreational and social facilities and sports centres.
Authorities are keen to build a high value, knowledge-driven economy in line with the vision laid out in the Strategic Plan 2015 by His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.