Dubai: Educational institutes attract more international students than ever before

Dubai, which earlier used to be a net exporter of undergraduate students to universities in Europe, Australia and North America, and was not known for higher educational facilities, let alone alluring some international students, until recently. 

The UAE used to send around 15,000 students to foreign countries annually, a number which has been on the rise up to 4% per year. 

During the spring and fall semesters, many students went out of the UAE to some of the best universities in the UK, the US, Australia, and Canada to pursue higher education, which they still do. 

Yet, the country is now attracting a large number of international students to a rising number of educational institutes due to the initiatives of the government. 

Presently, Dubai consists of 34 international higher education institutes that provide around 600 degree programmes, with one in four students, or 28%, coming from abroad. 

The international higher education institutes of Dubai reported an annual admission growth of 3.6%, with more than 29,000 students enrolled in university programmes. 

Online learning in the UAE has been on a constant increase with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) OF 10.3%. The e-education and e-learning market of the UAE is expected to have a high rise on the back of rising government investment to digitalise the educational sector and a positive student attitude towards small classes. 

“The UAE Government has been able to create a knowledge economy. We’re happy to play a role as an education group that has changed the lives of more than 15,000 international students who have joined our institutions.”

ACCORDING TO A RESEARCH REPORT, the UAE’s education market was valued at $5.2 billion (Dh19 billion) in the year 2019 and was expected to grow by 8.3% yearly.

The online education segment was valued at Dh3 billion ($854 million) in 2019 and was initially expected to reach Dh4.7 billion ($1.3 billion) by 2023 at a CAGR of 15.2%. The segment was expected to showcase more robust growth, mainly due to the Covid-19 pandemic that affected students’ movement in the country.

According to Research and Markets, an international market intelligence provider, the global online education market will reach $585.48 billion (Dh2.15 trillion) by 2027, from $269.87 billion (Dh991.22 billion) in 2021.