Dubai: The revenue base for the higher education market in the UAE is estimated to be worth more than $1 billion (around Dh3.67 billion), according to Higher Education UAE, an online portal promoting UAE-based universities.
The data was revealed on Saturday ahead of the upcoming IPSEF Higher Education Forum in Dubai next month. The forum is taking place alongside IPSEF Middle East, scheduled from October 3 to 5. The latter is a conference focusing on the private and international schools market in the region.
IPSEF stands for International and Private Schools Education Forum.
On Saturday, the data included a statement noting that UAE-based universities have grown consistently in enrolments and revenues at a compound annual growth rate of 8 to 10 per cent. The overall student base across local and international university campuses in UAE is estimated to be 162,000, with Dubai hosting around 60,000 students, of whom 20 per cent are graduate students and 80 per cent are in undergraduate level programmes.
Ajay Shukla, co-founder and chief strategy officer of Higher Education UAE, will be heading a panel in IPSEF Higher Education Forum on Transnational Higher Education – Opportunities and Challenges.
Mark Roelofsen, co-founder of IPSEF, said: “The region has seen a tremendous growth in the higher education sector, driven by the increase of enrolment in both state colleges and universities as well as private institutions including branch campuses of many well-established entities from abroad that are expected to fill in a growing demand. We believe this new stream will be a suitable venue for sharing best practices and new insights on how the various stakeholder groups can take advantage of the opportunities and mitigate the risks.”
