The UAE government is expected to continue to move forward with its reform agenda, focusing their efforts on boosting non-oil growth. Dubai will remain at the forefront of most of the new initiatives and will continue to diversify by developing tourism, media, shipping, financial and commercial services as well as expanding its manufacturing and industrial base.
The GDP for the UAE is currently USD 139 million with a 9.7 percent real GDP growth (source www.albawada.com). According to the UAE Chamber of Commerce Abu Dhabi has the highest GDP per capita in the world, USD 46,200. Inflation is a concern - one bank study showed 12-15 percent in 2006, double the rate estimated by the Ministry of Economy (Gulf News), however inflation is predicted to drop 2007/08. The dirham is expected to remain pegged to the dollar at the current rate of 3.68. The UAE Ministry of Education through strategy 2020 will be prioritising on the development of teachers and educators through training programmes, seminars and workshops.
Standards should reach international levels in two years, with the goal being a GCC education system incorporating a unified degree. The population is estimated to be five million with 15 percent UAE Nationals the remaining made up from the Asian sub-continent (India and Pakistan) around 60 per cent although these figures will be more up to date when the results of the full government census is available.
The UAE follows a 6-3-3 (primary-intermediate-secondary) year school system. Boys and girls are generally taught in separate schools, although some schools in the private sector teach pupils in separate classrooms or in split shifts. The school year lasts from August to May. Due to the UAE's demographics, various foreign education systems are followed, such as IGCSE, GCSE, A-Level, Indian CBSE and ISC, Pakistani high school, Iranian, French, American and local private high school diplomas.
In the government sector, Arabic is the medium of instruction, and in the private local sector, English is the medium of instruction, except for Iranian, French and Pakistani schools.
The demographic mix of the UAE requires different marketing strategies for the same sectors: interests, hobbies and habits differ from culture to culture, and therefore different messages need to be conveyed to UAE and Gulf nationals, Middle East and Indian sub-continent expatriates.
Published student statistics from the UAE are not representative, since they reflect those whose domicile is the UAE, while 80 per cent of the population would class their home country, (e.g. India, Egypt), as their domicile. Therefore, many students who apply to the UK from the UAE are counted in other countries' statistics, which may distort perceptions of total market size.
The UAE's educational structure has an easier fit with the USA, Canadian and Australian systems, since they all finish high school at grade 12. UAE students need to take a foundation course before starting undergraduate study in the UK.
The USA has immense influence over young people. Many of the young UAE adult population have been educated in the USA. There is high respect for the UK amongst the older generation. Amongst careers advisers, agents, Ministry officials and scholarship providers, there is a strong bias towards the USA.
For non-UAE nationals funding their own studies, the USA, Canada, New Zealand and Australia offer other advantages, including the possibility of scholarships, employment prospects after graduation and cheaper living costs. Growing anti-Moslem sentiments from the West are persuading families to send their children to countries like Egypt, Lebanon and Malaysia, where students can study in an Islamic environment.
There are 16 registered agents in the UAE, nine of whom are known to represent UK institutions. Agents are still building their reputations within the community. However, the British Council has developed agent support in terms of training and contacts.
There is a push in the UAE to skill UAE Nationals for the workplace, the old technical schools are now the Institute of Applied Technology (IAT). They take students from grade ten, and are concentrating in engineering and technical fields. There are opportunities for UK institutions in curriculum design and sharing best practice, faculty/teacher exchanges routes into higher education. Delivery of subjects related to current market demand both in the UK and in-country provision in the fields of engineering, aerospace/aviation, nursing, education and design subjects. Postgraduate distance learning programmes are still a popular option for those who are working on a residence visa but there are still barriers for UAE nationals.
This is predominantly a higher education, foundation course and ELT market. For higher education, undergraduate numbers are increasing at a faster rate than postgraduates. One-year Masters programmes are especially attractive, as they are shorter than those offered by most competitors. The main subject areas of interest are IT, Law, Business, Finance, Medicine, Engineering and Education.
The language map in UAE is complex, reflecting a multi-national society as well as the disparate social and professional strata. Hindu and Farsi are commonly in use, and English is very often the lingua franca between different ethnic groups. Many companies work through the medium of English. While official bodies, such as ministries, use Arabic, there is a steady demand for ELT programmes.
The British Council in the UAE has four offices, located in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah; the Sharjah office is an extension of the Dubai Teaching Centre.
The UAE operation focuses on teaching English, exam and education information services, access to UK resources and developing its cultural programme. The Abu Dhabi (capital city) and Dubai (commercial hub) offices undertake education promotion activities in addition to providing placement (for ELT), counselling and information services.
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