DUBAI: An Australian University is all set to open its doors to students at Dubai International Academic City (DIAC) this September.
Curtin University will offer courses in business, media and education. From next year the university will extend its programmes to also include classes in computer science, software, networking and hardware engineering.
Curtin University Dubai is brought to the UAE in partnership with Transnational Academic Group (formerly known as Global Institute Middle East) which also manages Murdoch University at DIAC. “It (Curtin University) is the largest institution by student numbers in Perth, Western Australia. In 1987 it was ranked Western Australia’s third best university and Australia’s best university offering courses in technology. By January 2019, we hope to double the size of our campus to accommodate 2,000 students,” said Dan Adkins, chief executive officer, Transnational Academic Group.
Student take up
Enrolments to Curtin Dubai have started. “We expect 80 per cent of the student take up to be from the UAE. The remaining slots will be filled by international students coming to study in Dubai.”
Students at Curtin Dubai will get their degrees from Australia Curtin University. All courses offered at the Dubai campus are licensed by the Knowledge and Human Development Authority, Government of Dubai (KHDA). “All our undergraduate and postgraduate programmes are quality assured by The Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) which is Australia’s regulatory and quality agency for higher education.”
Adkins said their Dubai campus is similar to the one in Perth where class-rooms are set up for distributed education. “This means students in Dubai will be able to join a Curtin university anywhere in the world.”
Practical learning
Students will be part of simulations and case studies to have a practical learning experience. For example, students taking finance will work on an online trading platform. They will have a live view of the stock market. We are possibly the first university to offer this,” said Adkins.
