Doctorate in education

In keeping with the mandate to transform the UAE into a knowledge-based society, the British University in Dubai (BUiD) last week launched the region's first Doctorate in Education (Ed.D). The programme begins in September at its campus in the Dubai Knowledge Village.

"The people of the UAE are its richest source," said Dr Abdullah Al Shamsi, vice-chancellor of BUiD. "Currently the region's education sector is badly represented in terms of the number of qualifications of its professionals. This programme will address this imbalance."

The programme is fully accredited by the UAE Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research and is offered over four years part-time at a total cost of Dh150,000. It has already received significant interest, with its first students expected to be UAE nationals.

The Ed.D programme combines a taught and a research degree with the emphasis on research, which consists of two-thirds of the degree. The objective is to support the development of a strong research-based facility, Dr Mick Randall, dean of the Faculty of Education at BUiD, told Notes. "With the UAE being such a young country, there is a need for the development of a research capacity and the aim is to cultivate the local community with a research-based degree."

Randall said that education should be research-led and for a nation to advance there is a demand for good researchers who are rooted in the local community. "Education is a major issue in any country, but in a youthful country like the UAE it is an important element. A good education system is essential not only in the UAE but in the Arab world," he said.

BUiD is the Middle East's first research-based, postgraduate university and was established to facilitate access to world-class education, training and research in the region. It is a non-profit institution governed by a council under the chairmanship of Shaikh Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Chairman and CEO of Emirates Group.