‘OUR CAMPUS ADDS LUSTRE TO DUBAI’S REPUTATION’
▶ University of Birmingham ready to make its mark in emirate’s education
A campus of the University of Birmingham, which officially opened yesterday, will push Dubai closer to its lofty goals for tourism, the head of the emirate’s education regulator said.
“It will put Dubai on the map as a destination for higher education,” said Dr Abdullah Al Karam, head of the Knowledge and Human Development Authority.
“People will be coming to study at the university and this is very good news for us because Dubai is diversifying its tourism sector, and the target is to have even more numbers of tourists but different types of tourists.
“So, higher education tourism is on the radar of the government. I think having a strong university like Birmingham definitely will help us to reach our target faster.”
The campus in Dubai International Academic City adds to the 27 international institutions operating in the emirate.
Over the past six years, enrolment in Dubai’s 31 private universities and colleges has grown at an annual rate of 9.6 per cent.
The University of Birmingham campus is in a temporary two-storey building after a £2.5 million (Dh12.7m) renovation to host classes until 2020, when the permanent campus is expected to be completed.
Many of the design elements of the UK campus have been duplicated in Dubai, including the green and grey colour schemes, furniture and study areas, said Trevor Payne, the University of Birmingham’s director of estates.
“We wanted to turn it into something that was very similar to the spaces we have in Birmingham, which is a very historic, red-brick building,” Mr Payne said. “It was a lot to do.”
In its first year, most of the university’s operations will be on the first floor of the campus, where a traditional lecture hall, computer and engineering laboratories, and seminar and tutorial rooms have been arranged.
Officials expect about 300 students during the first academic year, which begins in September. As the student population grows, more study spaces will open on the main floor.
Officials who gathered for the ceremonial launch emphasised that the Dubai location is not a branch campus of the 118-year-old institution in Birmingham, which is rated the 84th best university in the world in the latest QS Global World Ranking.
“What we have been trying to do with the building, as with everything, is to give the students who are here in the Dubai campus the same experience as the students in Birmingham,” said the principal, Prof Sir David Eastwood.
“We have been very clear about that throughout. This is the University of Birmingham Dubai, so same experience, same quality, same programmes, same degrees.”
Entry requirements and tuition fees are also equal at both campuses.
Students who graduate from the Dubai campus will be issued a degree certificate that reads “University of Birmingham”, but the official document will identify the school by its Emirati name.
“We are not working with an education investment company,” said Ben Bailey, director of campus operations. “This is owned, managed and operated by the University of Birmingham. That is a key differentiator.
“This is not a branch campus. This is the University of Birmingham that has chosen to develop a campus in Dubai.”
Director of operations Ben Bailey says the university’s presence in the UAE is a commitment to learning and standards