Dubai: For some in the local real estate industry, it’s time to sharpen the pencils. The first batch of students — numbering 30 — for the newly announced masters in real estate and property management will start on their one-year, three-semester course in September.
“The emphasis will clearly be much more on the practical aspect of a career in real estate than on academic theories,” said Mahmoud Al Burai, Executive Director at Dubai Real Estate Institute (Drei), which is overseeing the programme. “The potential student would most likely be someone already with a real estate background and who wants to upgrade his skills. Later on, we believe the course can attract those with one or two years’ experience in other industries and who wants to switch to real estate.
“The best part is that the one-year course is structured into modules — someone can join at the time of the second module and then work on the first. This offers the right degree of flexibility.”
Course fees are set at Dh70,000. A “few scholarships” will be on offer for UAE nationals. (The minimum qualification for an entry to the course is a second-class undergraduate degree.)
“The Masters course (done in tandem with UK’s University of Salford) is a culmination of what DREI set out to do eight years ago — in this period, 45,000 signed up to take in the certification courses offered by us,” said Al Burai. “We have 70 courses offered as option and one that’s compulsory for brokers registered in Dubai. Now, having reached the mature level, we are moving into the next stage with a master’s.
“We are working on plans to create a full-fledged programme tying up with some of the top universities in the US and UK, and offer further specialisations such as a master’s in real estate finance or property development. It’s a long-term plan and we are still on page 1. And a lot will depend on how the new master’s course fares.
“We purposely decided to cap the first batch at 30 rather than take in more. There’s much DREI itself can learn in how to structure the course and provide value addition in the future.”
Over the long term, the goal is to transition DREI into the status of a university. “We are hopeful that a green light will be given ... the Land Department has had plans for a permanent campus,” said Al Burai.
