Zayed University has announced ambitious plans to almost double enrolment over the next five years, carry out more research and turn itself into a model for other universities around the world. The federal institution, which was founded in 1998 and has branches in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, said today it aimed to become the leading university in the region, although it has yet to secure funds for all of its reform initiatives.
Unlike the oldest federal university, UAE University, which recently said it would launch PhD programmes and focus on engineering and scientific research, ZU is not planning to set up large-scale doctoral programmes. Instead, it will focus more on liberal arts and professional degrees and on growing its undergraduate numbers, with officials saying the differentiation of the institutions is a sign of the maturing of the country's higher education sector.
"I believe this is an historic period for Zayed University," said Dr Daniel Johnson, ZU's provost. In a report released today titled Destined to Lead, the university said enrolment would increase from 4,820 at present to more than 9,000 in 2014, reflecting a heavy increase in the number of Emiratis due to reach university age. The report outlines 44 initiatives ranging from the launching of a multimedia communications degree to the setting up of a college for international and advanced studies staffed by visiting scholars. dbardsley@thenational.ae
