Internationalisation: The tension between academic and commercial factors, with specific reference to the Gulf (GCC) UCET International Committee Meeting.

Internationalisation: The tension between academic and commercial factors, with

specific reference to the Gulf (GCC)

UCET International Committee Meeting

24 January 2011

Adrian Brockett

Faculty of Education and Theology

York St John University

Size (km2)

UK 244,110

KSA 1,960,000

Oman 309,500

UAE 82,880

Kuwait 17,819

Qatar 11,437

Bahrain 620

• 2004-9 pop growth GCC 3% p.a.• World 1% (Allten p 17)

Population% 0-14

% 15-64

% 65+

Median age

Population growth rate cf world

UK 62,348,447 17 67 16 40 0.6 180

Bahrain 738,004 26 70 4 30 1.2 100

KSA 25,731,776 38 60 3 25 1.5 80

Kuwait 2,789,132 26 71 3 26 3.5 5

Oman 2,967,717 43 55 3 24 2.0 69

Qatar 840,926 22 77 1 31 0.9 130

UAE 4,975,593 20 79 1 30 3.6 4

Source: CIA world factbook

“The GCC education sector is on a growth trajectory. The industry is poised for unparallelled and consistent growth propelled by increased private sector participation, rising education needs in the region as well as government initiatives to improve the education system.”

Source: Alpen Capital

% of allocation of budget on education

Bahrain 11.7 (2008)

KSA 25

Kuwait 12.9 (2006)

Oman 12.3

Qatar 20.5

UAE 22.5

Source: Alpen Capital (MEED Report)

Categories of educational developments

1. Sending students to study abroad. UK still one of the most attractive destinations.

2. Huge multi-billion pound cultural investments like Louvre, Guggenheim, BM.

3. Transnational universities. Some much larger than others.

1. Sorbonne. UCL2. Long established AUs – Beirut, Cairo. New ones : Sharjah,

Dubai, ...

4. Flying faculty. 5. Boom in private Higher Educational institutions.

Regional distribution of students

2010 2020

KSA 75% 74%

UAE 8% 8%

Oman 7% 8%

Kuwait 6% 6%

Bahrain 2% 2%

Qatar 2% 2%

Source: Alpen Capital

HE share of Gulf students

2010 2020

% 11 15

million 1,045,000 1,695,000

Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice (PCAP)

• Aims:– To promote professional development through

reflective practice. – To improve quality in the practice of teaching, learning

and assessment in Higher Education.

• Accredited through the HEA and aligned to the UK Professional Standards Framework.

• Successful completion of the programme enables participants to become fellows of the Academy.

University of Bahrain

University of Bahrain

University of Bahrain

Louvre Abu Dhabi

Guggenheim Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi

Similar arrangements have been made between Abu Dhabi and institutions such as INSEAD, New York University and Université Paris-Sorbonne.

Abu Dhabi - INSEAD

INSEAD is an international graduate business school and research institution. The school offers a full-time Master of Business Administration (MBA) program, a PhD in Management program, and several executive education programs (including an Executive MBA).

Abu Dhabi - NYU

• Not a study abroad site; a fully functioning university / small liberal arts college.

• Ist entrants September 2010• The campus construction (estimated at $1 to

$1.5 billion), expansion and operational costs will be entirely funded by the Emirati royal family.

• A full cost per student is approximately $62,454 a year, but NYUAD has vowed that no student will have to take on debt to pay for their education.

Paris-Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi

Paris-Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi (PSUAD)

• PSUAD offers majors in Humanities and Law. • It follows the new European system of higher education:

the License-Masters-Doctorate (LMD) system. The undergraduate portion consists of a 3-year degree called a License. The graduate portion consists of a 2 year Masters Degree, followed by a multi-year Doctoral program. These degrees are accepted at any University in the European Higher Education Area.

• Delivered by lecturers from Paris following the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS). The teaching language is French.

Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar

Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar

• Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar was established by Cornell University in partnership with Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, pursuant to an agreement signed in January 2001.

• WCMC-Q is part of Weill Cornell Medical College, which was founded in New York City over 100 years ago, and shares the same mission:– to provide the finest education possible for medical students – to conduct research at the cutting edge of knowledge – to improve health care both now and for future generations – to provide the highest quality of care to the community

Qatar Education CityAims to be the centre of educational excellence in the region. Six US universities have branch campuses:1. Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar School of the Arts

(VCUQ). 2. Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar (WCMC-Q). 3. Texas A&M University at Qatar (TAMUQ). 4. Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar (CMU-Q). 5. Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar (SFS-

Qatar). 6. Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q) One UK university:• University College London in Qatar (UCL-Q) It also has one Qatar university:• Qatar Faculty of Islamic Studies (QFIS).

Texas A&M University at Qatar

UCL-Q

UCL-Q• The partnership between UCL, the Qatar Foundation and the Qatar

Museums Authority, will focus on archaeology, conservation and museum studies.

• Launching next year, it will teach about 150 postgraduate students, and UCL is also planning to relocate four research projects of particular relevance to the Gulf region. Initially about a dozen active research staff will be based at UCL-Q.

• Different model: relatively small, research-led and niche, it will not offer undergraduate courses, but will focus on the postgraduate and research levels, as well as offering executive education, such as professional curatorial qualifications.

• The research findings will be published in world-leading journals, but they will be published from within the Arab world, rather than from London.

• No financial risks for UCL as its Qatari partners will provide all the funding.

The British University in Egypt

References• Alpen Capital, (2010) GCC Education Industry September 13, 2010. (Alpen Capital

(ME) Limited (‘Alpen’), an investment banking firm regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority.)

• Davidson, C.M. and P. Mackenzie Smith (Eds.) (2008) Higher Education in the Gulf States: Shaping Economies, Politics and Cultures: Shaping Economies, Polities and Cultures (London: SOAS Middle East Issues)

• “Foreign university students: Will they still come?” The Economist, 5 August 2010. http://www.economist.com/node/16743639

• Hamarneh, Al-, A., "Re-Thinking the Educational Frontier: The Political Economy of Globalizing Higher Education in the Arab World”. Unpublished paper given at the 2009 BRISMES conference.

• Steiner, C-A., “Economic Diversification, Higher Education and the Transnational Logics of the Symbolic Economy in the Gulf.” Unpublished paper given at the 2009 BRISMES conference.

• Various websites, e.g. CIA World Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/