Dubai International Academic City to Offer 35 New Courses

Dubai International Academic City

Universities at Dubai International Academic City (DIAC) will add 35 new courses for the 2013/14 academic year to meet the increased demand for certain majors.

The 35 new courses include 11 undergraduate programmes, 17 postgraduate and seven PhD programmes, bringing the total number of degrees offered by universities in DIAC to 355.

The universities will increase their offerings by more than ten per cent in tourism and hospitality, engineering and accounting.

Dr Ayoub Kazim, managing director, Dubai International Academic City, said: “We are delighted to see our universities expanding the number of programmes on offer in 2013/14 — particularly in subjects such as engineering, tourism and hospitality and accounting. We see this as a sure sign that the higher education sector in the region is responding to the demands of the local industry.”

He added that the increase in courses offered will also increase students’ prospects of employment upon graduation.

Kota Reddy, Chairperson of the Department of Engineering at Manipal University, said that engineering has emerged as one of the most sought-after programmes in the university. For this reason the university decided to expand its offering in the field.

“We have introduced a new undergraduate programme in automobile engineering as well as two quality master’s level programmes in digital electronics and advanced communication and manufacturing engineering and technology. We will be adding further engineering streams to our portfolio in the coming academic year, reflecting the increased interest and demand for engineering programmes in the UAE.”